Careless Man's Careful Daughter
by nebula2
Summary: Reid met Amber at Caltech. The courses of their life brought them together only to lead them in different directions. Years later, their paths cross. Can second chances really work?
1. Realization

AN: This story was inspired by Taylor Swift's song "Mine". For those of you who know the lyrics, you should see them reflected in the storyline. For those of you who don't know the song, I hope you'll still enjoy the story. I also did some research for the Coast Guard so I hope I've got that stuff close, if there are technical mistakes, or mistakes in the details, I hope you'll forgive me. Hope you enjoy the story.

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds and the characters of the show do not belong to me, I'm only borrowing them.

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_**2007 - Following the episode "Identity":**_

Reid stepped up to the office of SSA David Rossi, and knocked nervously. Part of him still wasn't use to Gideon being gone and still saw this as his former mentor's office. Other than the time he had come in here with Morgan and Prentiss, as they had tried to profile their new team member before their last case, he had been avoiding the office. He wouldn't be here now if Hotch hadn't asked him to drop something off.

"Come in," Rossi replied, glancing up from the report he was finishing up from their last case. He noticed immediately how hesitant and nervous the younger agent was. "Despite the rumors, I don't bite, though I might growl a little," he said, a small smile coming to his face.

Reid tried to smile, and failed as he took a few steps into the office. "Um, Hotch wanted me to drop this off to you. It's a consult he wanted you to work on," Reid said, his hesitancy coming through in his voice.

David Rossi held out his hand for the file. Slowly, Reid walked further into the office. He handed the file over to Rossi as he continued to glance around the office.

"I see the painters came in," Reid commented, noticing that the toupe walls were gone.

"Yeah, so what does this color say about me Dr. Reid?" Rossi asked casually, as he leaned back in his chair. He smiled slightly, amused at the flushed appearance that the younger agent's face took on.

"Ah, you know it was Prentiss who was using the wall color to profile you," Reid replied, looking around the office, wanting to see anything except his new teammate's face. "Maybe you should ask her."

"Maybe I will," Rossi commented. "Might be entertaining to hear her thoughts," the older gentleman said. He noticed Reid's gaze focused on something on the wall behind him. Turning his head to look over his shoulder, Rossi saw that he was looking at the Renaissance art that the young doctor had been profiling from. "Thought that was a good place for it. A person's taste in artwork says a lot about person, wouldn't you agree doctor."

"I guess, so. Sometimes. I didn't mean anything . . . I'm sorry if I offended . . ."

Rossi held his hand up. "No offense taken. We're all profilers here. Its second nature to profile people. We do it even when we're not consciously thinking about it. I'm the new guy on the team, its only natural that you all would be curious about me. It was kind of entertaining honestly."

"How much did you hear?" Reid asked, the tone of his voice revealing the nervousness he felt inside.

"Oh, I saw you all go into my office. You made it challenging for me to keep out of sight with you peeking out the door. I was wondering if you were actually going to leave the doorway?"

Reid nodded, his gaze floating around the office once more, not only seeing what was currently there but what use to be there too. On the bookshelf that was against the one wall, Reid's gaze fell on a picture. It showed a girl, early twenties sitting on a jetty by the ocean. The Pacific Ocean to be exact, as not only did he know the young woman in the photo but he knew it was taking about six years ago and he knew that because he remembered taking the picture.

"Whose that?" Reid asked, pointing at the photograph, curious to find out the relationship his new teammate had with the woman in the picture.

Rossi turned and looked at the photo. A smile came to his face. "That's Amber, my daughter. That was taken back when she was a sophomore in college. It's been about six years now. She's a rescue swimmer with the Coast Guard stationed out of Kodiak, Alaska, something that her mother blames on me."

Reid nodded, trying to keep his face passive so as not to give away that he already knew part of the information. To not reveal that he knew something that Agent Rossi didn't. Apparently, Amber hadn't gotten around to telling her father about her transfer yet. To be fair, Reid had only gotten the text informing him about it a few hours ago. The text had simply stated that she was being transferred to Station Washington in a couple of weeks and that she would call him tonight.

He suddenly wanted out of the office even more, and this time it had nothing to do with the fact that the office use to be Gideon's. Now he wanted out because he realized he knew a whole lot more about his new teammate than he had thought he did. Things that he was pretty sure Agent Rossi didn't want the whole team knowing.

Spencer Reid wasn't sure why he had never made the connection before. He had known Amber's last name was Rossi. Knew that her father was an author, as that was what the agent had been doing when he had met Amber, Agent Rossi having already retired from the bureau. Still, he had never made the connection that her father was indeed the well known profiler David Rossi whom Reid had been a fan of ever since he had read the man's first book.

Now that Reid had made the connection though, he suddenly wished he never had. The relationship he had with Amber Rossi had always been tenuous at best. It wasn't that the feelings weren't there. They loved each other, at least he thought they did, but neither of them had grown up in what could be defined as normal households. Neither of them had grown up seeing a loving example of what it meant for two people to live their lives for each other. Giving their childhoods it was only natural that they would have trouble developing normal, healthy, adult relationships. Despite all their problems though, there had always been something drawing them together. Reid had felt its pull ever since he had met her back at Caltech. The fact that he now knew he worked with her father just added one more element of weird to their unique relationship.

Reid opened his mouth to say something, but couldn't come up with anything, so he closed it again. The awkward moment was disrupted by the ringing of Rossi's telephone.

"I best be getting back to work," Reid said quickly, pointing toward the door as Agent Rossi reached for the phone.

Reid turned to head for the door and stumbled when he tripped over his own feet. Keeping his balance, his face flushing red once again, he continued toward the door.

"Agent Rossi," the older profiler said, answering the phone, catching the not so graceful exit of Dr. Reid. "Hey, Amber. It's nice to hear your voice. It's been awhile."

As Reid left his teammates office, he had the feeling that Agent Rossi was about to find out about his daughter's transfer.

Before walking into that office, Reid had thought the transfer would be a good thing. A chance for him and Amber to find again what they had once had. A chance to finally sort out their feelings for one another and figure out how to stay together. He had something to go on now having seen Hotch's relationship with Haley.

Hotch and Haley's relationship wasn't perfect, but then perfection was something that could only be found in fairytales. They had their problems, this job being one of the biggest of those, but through it all even someone as naive in the ways of love as Spencer Reid, could see that the two of them cared for one another. Reid had picked up on something being wrong with his boss's relationship lately. Had noticed Hotch didn't talk about Haley as much, nor did he call her like he use to. However, Hotch hadn't made any mention of it, and so Reid wasn't about to bring up the subject.

The one thing he did know was that Hotch loved Haley and Jack. Reid saw that love in everything his boss did, and every time he spoke of them. Reid hoped that one day he would find that. He was already sure he had found the person. Even after not seeing her for over a year, the two of them having caught dinner one time Amber was in town, he still knew he cared very deeply for her. Was it love? Despite knowing the logical, scientific definition of the word, Reid wasn't sure he could answer that. What he did know was that he enjoyed spending time with Amber. Felt better when she was around. Worried about her when she was away or he hadn't heard from her in awhile.

Now that he knew that Rossi was her father, he suddenly worried that maybe this wasn't meant to be. What would the older profiler think if he knew Reid had ever dated his daughter, let alone if the two of them got together once again. He had gotten the distinct feeling that Rossi didn't think too much of him while working on their last case in Montana. Rossi definitely hadn't seemed too impress when Reid had told him about reading all of the veteran agent's books nor had he been too talkative about the subject.

Reaching his desk, Reid plopped down in the chair and absently reached for the top file on the pile on his desk. He opened the file, and looked down at the contents laying on the desk in front of him, seeing them but not really seeing him. His mind was somewhere else.

Suddenly, he felt a hand touch his shoulder. Reid jumped at the touch, turning to see who was beside him. Glancing to his left, he saw Morgan, who had been working at his own desk, now standing there, a look of concern on his face.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you but I've been trying to get your attention for the last five minutes. You opened that file but haven't done a thing with it yet. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. Why wouldn't it be?"

"No particular reason. It just seemed like you were off in your own little world."

"Just thinking about something."

"Want to talk about it?" Morgan asked, not ready to let it go. It wasn't like Reid not to be able to focus while he was at work.

Reid shook his head no, and actually started working on the file. If he appeared to be busy working, the younger profiler was hoping that his co-worker would go back to his own work and let things go. It didn't happen that way though.

Morgan looked up to the office that Reid had just come out of. As much of an honor it was to work with a legendary profiler like SSA David Rossi, Morgan had his doubts about how well Rossi would fit with the new team environment of the BAU. Granted, this past case had gone much better than the first case Rossi had joined them on. Their new teammate seemed to be getting the hang of the new way of operating, working with them, sharing his thoughts with the team. Still, he was still the unknown link in the team, and as such Morgan was wary of Rossi. Not to mention, Morgan knew that there was something that Rossi wasn't telling any of them, not even Strauss. He also had the felling that it was that something that had brought him out of retirement.

Morgan looked away from the office and back down at Reid. "Is Rossi giving you a hard time?" he asked, knowing that Reid had just come from their new teammate's office. Yes, Reid, Prentiss and himself had been caught in Rossi's office, profiling the guy but Morgan wasn't about to let Rossi take that incident out on Reid. It had been his idea. Prentiss had followed willingly and Reid reluctantly. "I'll take care of it, if he is."

"What?" Reid asked, looking up at Morgan. It took him a moment to figure out what it was that the older man was saying. "No. It's fine. Rossi isn't giving me a hard time at all."

"Okay," Morgan replied and reluctantly head back to his own desk. He apparently wasn't going to get anywhere with Reid right at the moment. The dark-skinned profiler would let it go for now but he wasn't about to forget about it. He'd be keeping a close eye on Reid throughout the day and planned on making another attempt to get him to talk when they left work that afternoon.

_**Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak, Alaska:**_

"I'll call you with more details when I have them, Dad. I just wanted to let you know about the transfer and see if I could stay with you for a little while until I get settled," Lt. Amber Rossi said into the phone, as she sat at her desk at the air station. Around her it was business as usual at Station Kodiak, which to the untrained eye would look like chaos.

"You know you can crash with me anytime you need to. I also know you don't want to be living with dear old Dad for a long time, so I'll help you get settled into your own place as quickly as possible."

"Thanks, Dad," Amber replied, just as a call for her flight crew came over the station's PA system. "I got to go. We've got a call. I'll talk to you soon," Amber said quickly. She didn't even wait for her father's reply before hanging up the phone and getting to her feet.

At a brisk walk, she headed for the locker room as were the rest of her flight crew. Within moments she had donned the bright orange survival suit and gathered her gear from the locker. Pushing the locker closed, she turned an headed for the jayhawk helicopter that would be waiting to take them to wherever they were being called to.

One of four qualified female rescue swimmers currently with the Coast Guard, Amber Rossi had worked hard to get to where she was at. A champion swimmer since seventh grade, she had worked hard enough in high school, with both academics and her swimming, to earn herself a full athletic scholarship to Caltech, though college had been her mother's plan for her. Amber had her eyes set on the military, seeing it as way to get out on her own and to have the support of a close "family" that she had missed growing up. To keep the peace, Amber had given in and agreed to take the scholarship and go to Caltech, putting off any decision about the military for four years.

For Amber, there was never any doubt what she would do once she graduated from Caltech. The only thing that had changed was her choice in the branch of service she wanted to serve in. For as long as she could remember, Amber had wanted to follow in her father's footsteps and join the Marines. That had changed her first semester at Caltech. She had seen the Los Angeles Coast Guard in action for the first time, while working as an LA county lifeguard. She had been impressed to see how they had all worked together to reach a common goal. Impressed at the risks they had taken, especially the risks of the rescue swimmer, in order to save the lives of those that were in trouble. The men and the women were dedicated to everyday working to save the lives of those here at home, and not some unnamed faces overseas.

It was this cause of saving lives that had appealed to Amber. The Coast Guard, more directly than the other branches, were dedicated to the preservation of life. Sure, the rescue missions weren't the only thing the Coast Guard did. There was also the enforcement of maritime law. Missions to keep drugs from entering the country via the shipping lanes. By the mid-way point of her first year in college, Amber no longer had her eyes set on joining the Marines but in joining the Coast Guard. Though not a direct following in her father's footsteps, the spirit of the idea was still there and she still knew her father would be proud of her.

Much to her mother's chagrin, following graduation in May of 2003 Amber joined the Coast Guard and by mid-June was beginning Officer Candidate School at the Coast Guard Academy. As with many things in her life, her parents had fought over the whole incident, her mother blaming her father for her career choices. For putting "dangerous" ideas in her head. She had never been able to make her mother see that the choice was entirely hers. That though what her father had done with her life might have exposed her to the military life, he had never once pressured her to follow that path herself. Had never pressured her in her career choice like she had often felt that she had received from her mother.

At the end of the seventeen week course, Amber graduated at the top of her class from the program as an Lieutenant junior grade. Though her father had managed to make the graduation, taking time from his book tour, her mother did not. Amber soon found herself back in Los Angeles, this time serving with the coast guard air station, putting in the six month build up training necessary before she could attend the Aviation Survival Technician (AST) "A" School, her eyes set on completing the training to be a rescue swimmer.

Lt. Amber Rossi, climbed on board the jayhawk waiting on the tarmac for take off. As the helicopter took off, Lt. Rossi and her fellow flight crew members were soon receiving a briefing on the situation they were flying into. The FV Blue Aqua had suffered a fire while in the middle of the Bering Sea. Despite their efforts to put the fire out, the crew of the Blue Aqua had been unsuccessful and the captain had sent out the may day for Coast Guard assistance. Not long after the first call, the captain had radioed again saying that the crew was abandoning ship. Now, the members of the flight crew that were headed out to their location were all that stood in the way of an icy burial at sea for the crew of the FV Blue Aqua.

"Approaching Blue Aqua's last know position," the pilot said over the radios they were all wearing. "Keep your eyes peeled for survivors in the water."

"Opening cabin doors," Petty Officer Dan Finney said from his position near the door.

The cabin door to the helicopter opened, and the roar of the passing wind filled the cabin. The three Coast Guard personnel in the back of the jayhawk trained their eyes on the passing waters below. All eyes looking downward, looking for any bodies in the ocean. A splash of yellow or orange in the otherwise blue waters. The crew of the Blue Aquas best chance was to have been able to get into the life raft. If they were actually in the cold waters of the Bering Sea, even in the survival suits, they had very little time.

"We've got smoke to the south west," Commander Lou Harris, the leader of the flight crew, said over the radio.

The pilot, Petty Officer Jake Conrad, maneuvered the helicopter to head in that direction. All other eyes in the helicopter continued to scan the waters below. They were lucky in that the waters of the Bering Sea were relatively calm this early morning. The task of abandoning the ship and getting the life raft deployed would have been easier for the crew than if the winds were blowing and the seas were heavy. Given enough time to abandon their ship, the chances of the crew getting to the life raft were better than if they were in bad weather.

Soon, the sinking vessel FV Blue Aqua could be seen. Smoke billowed out from the engine room, and the waves lapped the deck, already partially underwater. There was no chance of saving the vessel but until they found bodies saying otherwise, the Coat Guard personnel of Airstation Kodiak considered the crew still alive and knew that they were the only thing standing in between those fisherman and certain death.

"Got a visual on the life raft," Finney called out, following the words with the location of the said raft.

Lt. Rossi followed Finney's directions and soon had a visual herself on the life raft. Immediately, she started scanning the waters in the vicinity of the raft, looking for any survivors who might not have made it to the raft. She was just thinking that all of the crew might just have made it onto the raft when she noticed a speck of orange in the water between the sinking ship and the raft.

"We've got a straggler," she called to her crew mates. "About thirty feet from the life raft."

"Okay, prepare to deploy swimmer," Harris commanded. "We're rescuing the individual first and then moving on to the life raft. Rossi, once the victim is in the basket and we're lifting them to the copter head for the raft."

"Understood, Commander," Lt. Rossi said as she moved to the edge of the cabin, her fins, mask and snorkel in hand, as Conrad maneuvered the helicopter to a position above the individual in the ocean.

Once sitting on the edge, Rossi placed the swim fins on her feet. Next, she removed the radio headset, and handed it to Lt. Barlow on her left. On her right, Finney was bringing the hood of the survival suit up, and zipping and fastening the clasp. Donning the mask with the snorkel attached, Rossi signaled that she was ready.

"Rescue swimmer ready to deploy," Finney called out.

"Deploy rescue swimmer," Commander Harris ordered.

Taking one last deep breath, Rossi pushed herself off the edge of the helicopter cabin and plunged feet first to the frigid waters below. Her momentum took her beneath the waves of the Bering Sea, and she immediately began kicking upwards to regain the surface. It wasn't long before the Coast Guard lieutenant's head broke the surface, and looking up she immediately signaled to her crew that she was okay before starting for the victim not far away.

Now that she was in the water with him, she could tell that the survivor was slowly trying to make progress toward the life raft. Relief that they weren't going to be pulling a body from the ocean this time, flooded through her as Rossi closed the short distance between them.

"Man, am I glad to see you," the captain of the FV Blue Aqua told her as she reached his side. "The rest of my crew made it to the life raft. The engineer suffered burns trying to put out the fire."

"We'll get your crew just as soon as we get you to safety," Rossi assured him, as she signaled for the basket to be lowered.

Quickly and efficiently, she helped the fisherman into the basket. As those in the helicopter started hoisting him to safety, Lt. Rossi started to swim toward the life raft. Having heard the beating of the helicopters rotors, the fishermen inside had unzipped the flap of the raft and two faces were peering out. As she approached the raft, Amber saw the hope in those two faces. It was that look of hope in the eyes of those she rescued that made everything she had gone through to get to this point worth it.

AST "A" school wasn't easy for anyone. Only about half of those who start the six month training at an air station in preparation of going on to the rescue swimmer school in Elizabeth City, North Carolina even make it. The attrition rate for the school itself is high, sometimes reaching as high as eighty percent.

Amber Rossi had long ago lost track of the number of people who had told her she would never make it through the training. Female candidates had to meet the same physical requirements as their male counterparts, meaning that they had to work harder to meet those requirements. Few made it past the pre-conditioning at the air station. Those who did, seldom made it through the A school. Amber took and used all the people saying she wouldn't make it through and used it as fuel to keep going. At moments during the eighteen week rescue swimmer school, when she toyed with the idea of dropping out on request, she thought of all those people who doubted her and dug deeper to continue on.

Amber had been sent to Air Station Sitka following the completion of the month long Emergency Medical Technician training in Petaluma, California. Arriving in Alaska at the end of the September in 2004, Lt. Rossi had been serving in the northern most state of the United States for the past three years. She had served at Air Station Sitka for six months before she was transferred to Air Station Kodiak. It hadn't taken her long to earn the respect of the other Coast Guard personnel she served with. Her current flight crew had been together for the past eight months. Other than Commander Harris, none of them knew about her transfer yet and Amber knew she would have to soon find the time to break the news to them.

Grabbing onto the life raft, Rossi peered inside, taking assessment of the survivors. There were five of them, which accounted for the full compliment of the FV Blue Aqua. She immediately spotted the guy who must have been the engineer, as she noticed the burns to the right side of the man's face. As the survival suit was covering the rest of the body, she couldn't see if there was any other burns. Counting respirations, she noted they were higher than normal.

"We'll get all of you to safety, but we're going to lift your engineer out first," Rossi informed the fishermen. "I need you to help me by moving him toward the opening so I can get him into the basket when my crew members send it down."

The survivors replied in the affirmative, and began to do as their savior asked, as Rossi glanced up to see where her comrades were. The helicopter was now poised over her position. In the opening of the cabin she could see one of her crew mates, which though she couldn't make him out from here, she knew would be Finney, peering down at her. She signaled for him to lower the basket again.

Amber felt a sense of relief wash over her, as Petty Officer Jake Conrad touched the helicopter softly down on the tarmac back at Air Station Kodiak. The engineer's condition had deteriorated during the flight back to the air station. The Coast Guard personnel quickly helped transfer the man from the helicopter to the waiting gurney of the paramedics. Amber and her crew had done their job and now the man's fate was in the hands of the paramedics who would transfer him to the hospital, where the doctors and nurses would take over.

"Thank-you so much. You don't know how grateful I am for what you've done," One of the other fishermen said coming up to Amber, reaching out to give her a hug.

Over the three years of working up here and plucking people out of the Bering Sea and the Pacific Ocean, she had gotten use to the displays of gratitude from those they saved. It was a natural reaction and one that made the job worth doing.

"Just doing my job," she told the man, returning a quick hug.

As he turned and followed the rest of this crew and the paramedics to the waiting ambulances, Amber thought about the good she had been able to do. Because of all of their efforts, these men would get to go home to their families. She felt good about that, but at the same time she also felt a sense of loneliness. Doing this job didn't leave much room for family. It kept them away from parents, brothers, sisters and other family and friends. It also left little room for starting a family of your own. Yes, a few attempted and even fewer made it work. None of her flight crew had wives and even Finney's fiancé had just recently called off the engagement.

Up here, her flight crew was her family and though each and every one of them meant the world to her, she knew that deep down, she wanted something more. Maybe that want was part of the restless feeling she had been experiencing over the last few months. The change in her attitude about the job. She used to live and breathe this job and never doubted she wanted to be doing anything else. Now, she often wondered what else she was missing out on. Wondering if life could hold something more for her. Instead of looking forward to the next mission, she found herself thinking about family and friends she hadn't seen in awhile. Thinking about Spencer Reid and what they had once shared. More than once, she had wondered if the two of them could once again found what they had once shared.

Commander Harris had noticed the change in Amber too and had ordered a psychological evaluation. The result of that evaluation was that the psychologist had reported that she was showing early signs of burnout. It was the psychologist who had suggested a transfer to a less remote post. Suggested that she step away from working as a rescue swimmer for awhile.

The lack of resistance at this suggestion had surprised Amber at first. After all she had done to get to this point, she couldn't accept the fact that she was ready to just step away from it. Now, she found herself looking forward to the transfer to Station Washington. She would still be serving in the Coast Guard. Still making a difference, just doing that in a different way. The fact that she would be near her Dad made the idea more appealing, though she knew that with him back in the bureau they might still have trouble finding time to see one another. The same went for Spencer.

Even being closer together might not be enough for her and Spencer to work things out. Seven years ago, the course of their lives had brought them together. The two of them had made the unlikely couple but somehow, at that point and time, it had worked. Then that chapter of their lives ended. The two of them had headed in different directions as they reached for their dreams. Now it seemed as though life was leading their paths to cross once more. Despite the unknowns, she found herself looking forward to this next chapter in her life.

As Amber walked off the flight deck surrounded by her flight crew, she knew the only thing she was really going to miss were these guys. Once again she wondered how she was going to break the news of the transfer to them.


	2. First Meeting

AN: Just wanted to say thanks to all those who left me feedback. It was much appreciated!

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_**Caltech, Los Angeles, CA, fall semester 1999:**_

Amber Rossi hurried through the hallways of Jorgensen Laboratory. She had told her friends she would meet them at the Sun and Surf Café, just off of Campus, twenty minutes ago. A computer science major, Amber had gotten caught up working on her programming assignment for her Object Oriented Programming class and had lost track of time. Five weeks into the semester, she was finding the course interesting and challenging. She had always enjoyed a good challenge and getting caught up solving something like that wasn't hard for her to do. There was also something relaxing in using a computer language to find a way to accomplish the task set before her. This also wasn't the first time she had been late meeting her friends and she had a feeling it wouldn't be the last over the next four years of college.

Reaching the parking lot, she got into her vehicle, and pulled carefully out of the parking space. It wasn't long before she was pulling the green Chevy Silverado truck into an empty space outside of the Sun and Surf Café. Grabbing her wallet from her back-pack, she climbed out of the pick-up and pushed the door shut. Slipping her wallet into the back pocket of her jeans, she headed for the café.

The place was packed as it was every Friday night. The Sun and Surf was a popular hangout for the students of Caltech. It's atmosphere captured the carefree beach life of California. The current song from the jukebox sent the sounds of the Beach Boys through the crowded café. Glancing around, Amber quickly spotted her friends at a corner booth near the back of the café.

"There's our wayward computer nerd," Mark Chaulk called out as he spotted Amber approaching the table. "Are you finished hacking into the system to change your grades?" he asked jokingly.

"I don't need to change my grades, as I earn them. You on the other hand might be served better by studying instead of being here," Amber replied as she slid onto the end of the semi-circle bench seat next to her best friend, and roommate Maria Chaulk.

Maria and Mark were twins, and had always been close. Though Mark had a few friend's of his own that he sometimes hung out with, he was more often than not, found hanging with his sister's group. Whereas Maria loved school, and was a Chemistry major, Mark wasn't as focused as his sister. He had the brains, but was more of a free spirit. He hadn't declared a major yet and wasn't even seriously thinking about it. Mark had been recruited to Caltech to play football. Mark was the back-up quarter back for the school's football team, poised to take over the starting role next year when the current quarterback graduated. Mark's grades were just high enough to keep him eligible to play and keep his athletic scholarship, not because he couldn't do it but because he would rather spend his time in other pursuits rather than study.

"I need to vent before the big game tomorrow," Mark countered. "You're all coming right. Coach promised me playing time in the fourth quarter."

"I don't know, I might have to paint my nails," Vanessa Fields, Mark's girlfriend since the beginning of the school year, remarked absently from her place beside him. She picked up a fry from the basket in front of her, and took a bite.

Mark plucked a piece of ice from an empty glass, and proceeded to drop the frozen cube of water down the back of her shirt. Vanessa squealed as the cold ice slid down her back and the friends laughed.

"Amber, Chelsea and I were talking about getting together after the game tomorrow to study for that literature test on Monday. You with us?" Vince Dilaway asked sitting across the table from Amber. The three of them were all in the same English class together.

"Sounds like a plan," Amber told him with a nod.

The friend's conversation was interrupted by the arrival of their waiter.

"Can I get you anything?" the waiter asked, in a hesitant voice. Tall and skinny, Amber thought the guy was way too nervous to be a waiter. She also recognized him as the TA from her chemistry class.

"I'll take a coke and the Chicken Apple Salad," Amber replied, having been to the café enough to know what she wanted without looking at a menu.

"Can I get anything for anyone else?" he asked, looking at the table and not at the occupants of it.

"I'll take another tea, please," Chelsea said.

When no one else spoke up, the waiter turned to leave, stumbling slightly. Mark and Vince laughed lightly, and most of the girls had smiles on their faces as the waiter walked toward the kitchen.

Amber kicked Vince lightly under the table. "Be nice," she scolded him.

"I have never seen such an awkward waiter or waitress in my life," Mark commented. "I'm surprised more people don't end up wearing their orders when he's around."

"He would be kind of cute if he wasn't so awkward," Maria commented, as she watched their waiter disappear into the kitchen area of the café.

The guy was kind of awkward as a TA too, always nervous when in front of the class during the lab sessions. Still, he did seem to know what he was talking about and Amber's classmates said he was very helpful when they went to him for one on one help during office hours. From what she had heard from students in the sections of the course who didn't have the same TA as she did, the same couldn't be said for the other TA.

"You've got to be kidding me?" her brother commented in disbelief. "It has been too long since you've been on a date, I do believe."

"I don't know, I think your sister has a point," Vanessa commented. "However, he's nowhere near as handsome as you," she added, smiling up at her boyfriend.

"Yeah, you better think that," Mark told her, as he leaned in to kiss her.

"Okay, well that's two votes for could be cute," Maria said, clearly enjoying the current subject. "Chelsea what's your vote?"

"Well, if you go for the geeky, nerd type, I guess so," Chelsea replied as she picked up her hamburger. "Me, I'd much rather go for the mysterious, rock-star type guys."

"Yeah, exactly how many piercings did that last dude you dated have?" Vince asked, from his spot beside her.

"Why, Vince? Are you jealous?"

"Not hardly," Vince told her. "I'll stick with my one thank-you," he informed her, referring to the small gold cross stud that could be seen in his left earlobe.

"What about you, Amber?" Maria asked, nudging her friend gently in side. "Is the waiter cute or not?"

"How can you even rate someone you barely know?" Amber asked.

"I've got eyes and I know if I like what I see," Maria replied, with a shrug and a smile.

"There's more to a person than just their looks," Amber responded.

"This from the girl who has been out on exactly one date since I met her," Vince commented. "And that one I practically had to bribe you, as my date didn't want to leave her visiting cousin home alone and I didn't want her to cancel the date."

"I haven't met anyone who has interested me," she replied.

"Sure you haven't. As many students as there are on campus, not to mention the rest of the LA population, and there isn't anyone who interests you? You're just afraid of falling in love."

"So what if I am? It's not all its cracked up to be. If it doesn't work out a lot of people just wind up getting hurt and not just the two involved in the relationship."

"But sometimes it does work," Vanessa commented. "And the ride sure is fun," she added, snuggling up to Mark.

"Vanessa has a point. Our parents have been together for twenty-four years now," Maria said, pointing toward herself and then waving her hand in Mark's direction.

"And I'm happy for them. However, with my Mom's latest marriage, there have been seven weddings and six divorces between my two biological parents. Seems to me your parent's happy marriage is the exception."

"That's not far from the truth, actually," their waiter said, as he placed Chelsea's tea and Amber's coke down in front of them. "Statistics say that forty-one percent of marriages ended up in divorce last year. In fact there were 944,317 divorces in 1999 which was down from the 947,384 the previous year. About 16.8 children per one thousand children under the age of eighteen are involved in their parent's divorce and though seventy-five percent of divorced people remarry, sixty-five percent of those marriages fail."

"That's kind of depressing to know," Chelsea commented.

"Can I get you anything else?" the waiter asked, as if the numbers he had just spouted out were everyday knowledge.

His question was met with seven variations of a negative responses and once again their waiter disappeared.

"Okay, so that was kind of random," Mark said. "Who the hell knows that kind of stuff off the top of their heads anyways?"

"Apparently he's some kind of genius or something," Vince responded. "Our chemistry professor, Dr. Owens, introduced him as Dr. Spencer Reid on the first day of class. Apparently he's working on his second doctorate or something and he's younger than me."

~_Well, I was really paying attention the first day of class_,~ Amber thought to herself, as she took a sip of her soda. She had chemistry with Vince, in fact the two of the were lab partners.

"Why would you need more than one doctorate?" Mark asked. The whole group realized that Mark was not really expecting an answer, so the conversation changed to the upcoming football game the following day.

The next time they saw their waiter, Spencer had Amber's salad with him. He placed the plate on the table and as he was moving his hand away, brushed Amber's almost empty glass with his hand. The glass started to topple over, and the waiter made a grab for it, accomplishing only to knock the glass over in the other direction. The ice and remaining soda poured onto the table, and flowed toward the edge. Jumping to her feet, Amber managed to only wear a small amount of the dark, sticky liquid, as the rest dripped onto the floor.

"I am so sorry," Spencer said quickly, grabbing some napkins from a now empty table behind him and starting to clean up the spilled liquid. His face had turned a bright crimson.

"It's fine," Amber replied. "I can clean the table, perhaps you could get a mop to clean the floor," she suggested, not really wanting to have her feet sticking to the floor for the remainder of the evening.

"Yeah, sure," Spencer replied, leaving the napkins on the table and heading to the back for a mop.

"Well, you nailed the awkward part there, Maria," Vince commented, picking up the knocked over glass and pushing ice cubes off the edge of the table and back into the glass.

"Someone should tell him that spilling drinks on the customers is not a good way to get tips," Mark commented as he handed some napkins to Maria, who started helping Amber mop up the soda.

"Be nice," Amber chided. "It was an accident. It could have happened to anyone," she responded, feeling the need to defend the guy, though she wasn't sure why. "Thanks," she said, to Chelsea, who had handed her the empty basket that had once contained her fries.

Vince placed the glass, with only ice now in it, on the table. "I'm going to go wash my hands," he told his friends, sliding out of the booth and heading toward the bathroom.

Between the two of them, Amber and Maria quickly had the table dried off, and the soda soaked napkins sitting in the basket.

"I need to wash my hands, myself," Amber said, as she finished drying her hand with a napkin. Though dry she could still feel the stickiness from the soda.

"I'll come with you," Maria said, carefully sliding past the soda on the floor and getting up from the table herself.

As they headed for the bathroom, they passed Spencer carrying the mop. On seeing her, the waiter's face flushed red again and he glanced down at the floor in front of him. Without a word, Amber walked by and entered the woman's bathroom.

"You sure were quick to jump to that guy's defense out there," Maria commented coyly, as the two friends washed their hands in the bathroom's two adjacent sinks.

Maria, Mark, and Amber had known each other before coming to Caltech. Amber had met the twins in kindergarten, not long after her mother had moved her from Commack, Long Island to Freeport, Texas. Maria and Amber had become best friends shortly after meeting and had continued to be friends as they grew up in Freeport.

"He was embarrassed enough by the incident. Vince and Mark's teasing would have only made the situation worse," Amber said defensively.

"Or maybe there is something more too it?" she asked.

"I don't even know the guy," Amber said, as she finished rinsing her hands and turned off the water. She turned to pull a paper towel out of the dispenser.

"But he is cute isn't he?" Maria asked, reaching past Amber to get her own paper towel. When Amber didn't respond, Maria continued. "Oh come on, just because you've got it in that head of yours that love isn't worth bothering with because it doesn't last, doesn't mean you don't look at guys like the rest of us. I've seen you drool over Noah Wylie just like the rest of us."

"Okay, so the waiter is kind of cute," Amber admitted tossing her paper towel into the trash can. "It doesn't mean anything though. Number one he's my TA and I'm sure there is something in the school rules somewhere against that. I'm definitely not chancing my scholarship for a relationship."

"The class is over in December," Maria reminded her.

"You're not going to let this go, are you?"

"I don't like seeing my friend lonely."

"I'm not lonely. I've got my friends," Amber countered as the door opened.

A pair of giggling girls came into the bathroom. Amber recognized them from calculus class. Catching the door with her left hand, Amber let them pass and then started out of the bathroom.

"That's not what I meant, and you know it," Maria told her, as she followed her best friend out of the bathroom.

The two of them made there way back across the café to where they had left their friends. Vince was already back at the table. A new glass of coke was sitting on the table, and as Amber waited for Maria to slide into her seat, the computer science major scanned the café for the waiter. She spotted him at another table.

Amber sat down at the table and picked up her fork. As she listened to her friends talk, she began to eat her salad, her eyes drifting every so often to watch Spencer Reid.

Realizing that he couldn't avoid it anymore, Spencer Reid made his way over to the table where he had spilled the drink. Avoiding eye contact, he addressed the tables occupants.

"Can I get anyone, anything else?"

"Just the check," Mark replied.

Spencer nodded and turned away from the table as the conversation between the group started up again. It wasn't long before he was returning to the table with the check. He placed the slip of paper on the table, and told them he would get it when they were ready, and headed for another one of his tables.

This was far from the ideal job for him. He was clumsy and sometimes got tongue tied when addressing his customers. The only thing he didn't have to worry about was forgetting someone's order. That had never happened and with his eidetic memory, never would. Still, he would have preferred working anywhere else but at a café frequented by mostly Caltech students but this was the first job he could find, and though his scholarship covered all school expenses, there were still other things he needed to have money for, especially as his mother was in no position to help him out and he had no idea where his father was. Unlike most college students, he didn't have the support system of parents who could help him out. He was on his own, and that meant he couldn't be choosy about jobs. He had to work the one that was available to him.

The fact that two of the students at the table were in one of the chemistry sections that he was the TA for, had not gotten past him. Even after the group left the café this evening, he was still going to have to face those two come next Wednesday evening. To make matters worse, the girl he had spilled the drink on was one of those two. He was dreading Wednesday already.

Not to mention, the girl was pretty. Her wavy brown hair, was cut just above her shoulders and her green eyes had seemed very kind. She had also been very gracious about the accident. Spencer had heard one of her friend's call her Amber. She was just the type of girl that Spencer knew he didn't stand a chance with.

Spencer went back to collect the payment, and bring back the change. After leaving the change and wishing the group a good night, he gratefully left the table for the last time. He had refilled one of his tables drinks when he noticed that the group had left. Making his way back to the table to start clearing it, he anticipated that if there was a tip, it wouldn't be much and he wouldn't blame them at all. To his surprise though, the tip that was left was more generous than most of the tips that were left.

Putting the money in his pocket, Spencer had a feeling that he had Amber to thank for that. Picking up several of the plates he started back for the kitchen.

Four hours later, the last of the customers having left twenty minutes earlier, Spencer Reid was finally able to call it a night. Grabbing his dark brown messenger bag from where he had stored it during his shift, Spencer left the café alone. He walked to the corner of the street and waited for the next bus back to campus.

As he waited, he was aware of the other groups that walked by. Very seldom did he see people walking alone where out in the city or on the Caltech campus. Even when he did notice people walking by themselves, they seemed to know at least a few people that they passed, shouting greetings or waving as they went about their way.

Though he knew some people on campus, classmates that he had worked on projects with or undergraduates from a section he was a TA in, he was very seldom greeted while walking about. In a sea of people, Spencer felt very much alone, much like he had felt most of his life. Part of him felt like he should've been use to it by now, but there was no getting use to something like that. It was human nature to seek companionship from other humans and despite his intellect, Spencer Reid was human.

By the time the bus had arrived, several other people had joined Spencer at the bus stop. Getting on the bus, Spencer headed toward the back of the bus where there were some empty seats, and sat down. Sliding in to sit next to the window, Spencer looked out the window as the bus made its way to the Caltech campus. At the stop closest to the building where he was staying this year, Spencer got off with several other Caltech students and made his way to the dorm.

Though it was late, it was still a Friday night and many of the other residents of the building were still up. Doors to rooms were open, as students visited each other, asking questions of classmates about assignments. Three residents were engaged in a game of monkey in the middle, and Spencer had to dodge a ball that was overthrown.

"I'm sorry," the guy who had thrown the ball, who was probably a few years older than himself, said, as Spencer continued to walking down the hallway.

"It's no problem," Spencer replied, without stopping.

Reaching his room, Spencer took out his key, and let himself into the room. Closing the door, the sounds from the hallway became muffled noises. It didn't take long for him to change into a t-shirt and flannel pajama pants. Retrieving the book he had just purchased that morning, the most recent release by one of his favorite authors David Rossi, Spencer started reading. He fell asleep somewhere during the fourth chapter.


	3. Seeking Advice

_**2007 - Quantico, Virginia:**_

Finishing the current file he was working on, SSA Spencer Reid closed the folder. Reaching his hands up over his head, he stretched, loosening the stiff muscles of his shoulders. Bringing his arms down he glanced at his watch. It was almost five o'clock on a Friday. Almost time for them to call it a day and head home.

Placing the file on top of the others that were completed, Reid got to his feet. Though Morgan hadn't asked him if he was okay since that morning, he knew his friend. Reid had no doubt that Morgan would make another attempt at it before he headed out of the office. Hoping to avoid that, Reid got to his feet and walking past Morgan and Prentiss' desks headed to the upper level of the room, toward JJ's office.

Reaching the media liaison's office, Reid knocked on the metal doorframe as the door was open. JJ looked up from her computer screen. As usual, piles of files were stacked in various places around the office, five stacks on her desk alone. To his surprise, JJ didn't have a file open on her desk.

"Hey, Spence," JJ said, motioning for him to come into the office. "What can I do for you?"

"Nothing, really," Reid replied, with a shrug of his shoulders, as he took a couple of steps into the room. "I just reached a good stopping point for the day and thought I'd drop by. Are you busy?"

"For a change no," JJ replied, having been told by Hotch that under no circumstances was she to stay late tonight, she had decided ten minutes ago not to open another file, knowing that she wouldn't be able to stop in the middle of it.

The whole team had been pushing themselves lately, what with Gideon's abrupt departure, Strauss attempts to break up the team, and getting use to a new team member. Their unit chief had told them this morning that he wanted them to all enjoy their weekend because they deserved some time to themselves. He had later paid a personal visit to his media liaison, knowing that she often put in just as many hours as himself, staying late and arriving early. Her response to his request that she left on time was to make him promise the same thing and she intended to see that he did. Of course, as well as she knew Hotch, she knew he would probably end up taking work home with him.

"Have a seat," she told her friend, indicating the chair across from her. She had a feeling the young genius did indeed have something on his mind. At the same time, she knew that getting him to talk about it might take some finesse. Saving the email she had been composing to Will LaMontange, she logged out of her email.

Looking up, she noticed Reid absently rearranging the pens in the cup that sat by her computer screen. JJ leaned back in her high-backed black chair.

"Got any plans for this weekend?" JJ asked, figuring the best way to go about things was to get him talking and then narrow in on what it really was that had brought him to her office.

"Not really, though I am coming up on a deadline for an article for the Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology. I'll probably try to work on that."

"I thought Hotch told us to relax this weekend?"

Reid shrugged. "Writing can be relaxing. Besides, it's not like I have a whole lot of friends I could call up and make plans with."

JJ cringed inwardly. No one knew better than JJ just how few friends Spencer had outside of the team. It hadn't been her intent to remind him of that fact. She wanted to suggest they do something together but she was hoping Will would have some free time that would make a trip down to New Orleans for a night worthwhile. As she hadn't told anyone on the team that she had been keeping in touch with Will LaMontange since their case in The Big Easy, she couldn't very well tell Reid that or invite him along with her.

"And what would this article be about?"

"A study I've been doing about whether juvenile detention centers truly rehabilitate children like they are intended to or is it really just a punishment. The data I've collected is really quite interesting."

"You'll need to let me know when it comes out so I can read it," JJ told him quickly, wanting to show interest but really not wanting to hear a lecture on the subject right before the end of a workday right before a weekend off.

"I will," Reid told her, smiling. Morgan and Prentiss had both been coming up with excuses that they needed to be elsewhere whenever he brought the subject of his paper. It didn't take him long to figure out that they really just weren't interested.

There was a pause and silence filled the air. As close as JJ and Reid were, the silence was an easy and comfortable one. Still moving the pens around in the cup, Reid thought over how to best segue into the topic that he was hoping to discuss with JJ. At the very least, he knew that the blonde media liaison would not laugh at him even if she didn't have any advice on how he should proceed.

"JJ, what do you think of Agent Rossi?" Reid finally asked, letting go of a pen he had been holding, and letting it fall to the side of the cup.

"Where did that come from?"

"Just curious," Reid replied, plucking a pen from the cup and spinning it, while holding it between his thumbs and forefinger. He watched the pen instead of looking up at JJ.

"Well, I feel it's an honor to be able to work with him. Hearing him at a book reading was what led me to join the FBI. I just found it so inspiring but as he was retired, I figured I would never get a chance to work with him, and it seems unreal sometimes that I am. He isn't exactly what I thought he would be like, though I think we'll all learn a lot from working with him. Despite the rough start he had with the team, I think he's starting to get the hang of how things work around here."

JJ paused, expecting Reid to say something. Maybe even explain the reason he had asked the question in the first place. When he didn't offer an explanation, she spoke again.

"Feeling a little let down about meeting your idol in real life?" she asked, half jokingly. She knew Reid was a huge fan of Rossi and his books, a fact that he didn't exactly keep secret.

"Maybe a little. He hasn't exactly seemed open to the conversations I've started with him, but I guess I should be use to that by now," Reid replied, as he managed to spin the pen out of his fingers. The pen fell on the edge of the desk and then bounced down to the floor.

"Maybe you're trying too hard, Spence," JJ commented, as the young profiler leaned over to retrieve the pen.

Reid returned the pen to the cup and then crossed his arms across himself. "Maybe. Social graces aren't exactly my forte. Still, I sometimes get the feeling that he doesn't really like me."

"It's not that he doesn't like you, Spence, but more that he doesn't quite yet know what to make of you yet. You're not exactly a typical FBI agent."

"I'm not a typical anything," Reid replied. "I've only ever felt like I belonged three times in my life. My mother, despite her disease, always made me feel that way and, yeah it took a little while, but I feel like I belong with this team, well at least until recently. Now I'm not so sure."

"You do belong with this team. You're a very special part of this team and that hasn't changed now that Rossi is here," JJ told him, wishing he was a little closer to her so she could give him a hug or even pat his shoulder. "What was the third time?"

"What?"

"You said you felt like you belonged three times, but you only named two times," JJ pointed out. "So, what aren't you telling me, Spence?"

At the question, JJ noticed her friend's face flush. She had a feeling she had hit on the real reason he had come into the office.

"The third time was when I was at Caltech. I had met this girl and we were sort of dating."

"There is no such thing as sort of dating. You either were or you weren't."

"I guess you could say we were a couple though it was casual. She was kind of reluctant to be in a relationship and well, you know from experience what being out on a 'date' with me can be like."

"Don't sell yourself short, Spence. You're a great guy and one day you're going to find the right girl for you who is going to realize that." JJ paused but when Reid didn't reply she asked another question. "What happened between the two of you?"

"Our careers. I came out East for the FBI academy while she was finishing up at Caltech. Following graduation she joined the Coast Guard. We've stayed in touch but she's never shown any interest in a long distance relationship."

"What about you? Did you ever express to her any interest in pursuing the relationship?"

Reid shrugged his shoulders. "I always thought the relationship was hard enough when we were in the same city. Always felt like I was in over my head. That at any moment she would wake up and realize she could have any guy she wanted and they would all be a better choice than me."

"There you go selling yourself short again. You've got a lot to offer and any woman who can't see that isn't worth it."

Reid ducked his head in embarrassment.

"The fact that she's kept in touch gives me the impression that she's still interested," JJ told him, continuing with her advice even though he wasn't directly asking for it. Something told her that was what she had come into her office for, even if he couldn't bring himself to say so. "How long distance are we talking about?"

"Well, she's been serving up in Kodiak, Alaska. However, she sent me a message this morning that she's being transferred to D.C."

JJ smiled and nodded her head. "Seems to me she's implying that she's interested in getting back together with you."

"You haven't even met her."

It was JJ's turn to shrug her shoulders. "It's a woman intuition thing."

"Yeah, well I'm suddenly wondering if pursuing any type of a relationship is really a wise thing for me to do."

"And why is that?"

"I know a lot about both of her parents, especially her father. Knew she was closer to him than her mother. Knew that she had kept his last name and what he did. I just never put two and two together and now it just seems so obvious. I should've have realized it before."

"Realized what, Spence?" JJ asked, suddenly feeling completely lost.

"She's Rossi's daughter."

"Really!" JJ said sitting up. "I didn't even realize Rossi had a daughter. Are you sure?"

"Yes. I asked. He's got a picture of her in his office. A picture that I took back when we were in LA. Even if we could figure out how to make things work, how am I ever going to be able to face Agent Rossi. He already doesn't like me. If he finds out I ever dated his daughter he's probably going to hate me more and with us all in the same city, he's going to find out."

"Relax. You're over reacting."

"Overreacting! The guy carries at least one gun!" Reid told her.

JJ bit her lower lip to keep herself from laughing. She really felt that he was worrying for nothing, but trying to convince him of that was the trick.

"Agent Rossi isn't going to shoot you," JJ said calmly, while managing to keep a straight face. Showing her amusement wasn't going to help the situation any. "And who knows, maybe he already knows you dated his daughter at one time. Just because you didn't make the connection doesn't mean he didn't."

"Great, maybe that's why he already hates me."

JJ got to her feet and leaned across her desk. Careful not to knock over any of the stacks of files, she rested her hand on one of Reid's folded arms she looked straight at him. "You are reading things into this situation that is not there. Don't let that cloud your judgement. This girl, whoever she is, must still be interested on some level or she would not have told you about the transfer. Maybe the two of you will be able to work something out and maybe you won't but whatever the outcome, let it be between the two of you. Don't make a decision based on how you think someone else is going to react."

"I'm scared," Reid admitted softly.

"Love can do that to a person," JJ replied, as she sat back down in her chair. She thought about Will, the New Orleans detective she had met awhile back. She had never met someone who intrigued her the way he did. Who was such a gentleman and the perfect combination of strength and tenderness. Yet the idea of caring about someone, of being dependent on someone like that, scared the hell out of her. The distance between them gave her a sense of security which was the only thing keeping her from running as fast as she could away from a relationship with the Cajun.

Before either of them could say anything else, there was a knock at the door. Both JJ and Reid looked toward the door to find their unit chief standing in the doorway.

"Just dropping by to let you know that I'm upholding my end of the bargain by heading for home. You should do the same."

"Right," JJ replied with a smile. "I'll be leaving shortly and I promise, I won't be working on anything," the blonde told him. She waved her hands over her desk. "See, no files opened."

"Good. You both enjoy your weekend," Hotch said, with a slight nod. Both JJ and Reid bid him good-bye as he left the doorway and headed in the direction of the elevators.

Reid turned his head to look back across the desk at JJ. "What was that about?"

"Hotch wanted to make sure I didn't stay late going through files, and I made him promise the same thing."

"Well, I don't want to be the one to keep you here at the office," Reid commented, getting to his feet.

"Spence, you don't have to leave. If you want to talk, I'm always here for you."

"No, it's fine. I don't want to keep you. A weekend off has been a rarity lately. I'll see you Monday, JJ."

"Okay," JJ said, sensing her friend drawing back into himself. He obviously had decided he had said all he was going to say for now. She made a mental note to call him at least once during their weekend off, just to check up on him. "If you need to talk, don't hesitate to call," she added as Reid approached the door.

"I'll remember that," Reid replied, before he ducked out of the office.

JJ watched Reid head back toward the bullpen. Somehow, it surprised her that Reid had ever had a serious relationship with anyone. He was just so shy and closed off to people so much of the time that she couldn't picture it. She also had her own experience of the football game she had gone to with Reid. It had been fun, and he had been sweet but he also definitely had seemed completely out of his element. Still, if someone were to get past all of that, they would be one lucky person.

~_Maybe I need to strike up another conversation with Agent Rossi_, ~ JJ thought as she logged back into her email account. ~_Casually bring up his daughter and try to get a feel for what she's like myself_, ~

Still, that would have to wait until the new week began. Right now, she wanted to finish her email to Will and then head on home, leaving this job and all its horrors behind for the next few days.

* * *

Leaving JJ's office, Reid headed back down toward his desk. Prentiss had already left, but to his disappointment, Morgan hadn't. Apparently the trip to JJ's office wasn't going to let him avoid Morgan after all. The dark-skinned profiler wasn't even trying to be subtle about his intent, as he stood leaning against Reid's desk, obviously waiting for him.

"Did you think you could avoid me, Kid?" Morgan asked, as Reid made his way down into the bullpen and toward his desk.

"I just wanted to talk to JJ," Reid replied, not making eye contact with Morgan.

"Yeah, sure," Morgan said, not sounding at all convinced. His eyes watched Reid as he the younger profiler walked past him and pulled out his chair. Reid picked up the messenger bag that had been sitting on the chair and placed the strap over his head, settling it on one shoulder. "Do you have any plans for tonight?"

Reid shrugged his shoulders, still not looking up at Morgan. Instead, he glanced up at Agent Rossi's office. The room was dark, and he assumed that Rossi had already left. Gideon had often stayed late even on a Friday before a weekend off. Reid had lost count of how many times he had ended up staying after hours with Gideon, talking about this or that or even just playing a game of chess. That wouldn't happen any longer.

"Let's go grab something to eat," Morgan suggested, seeing where his friend's gaze had fallen. He knew now was not the time to bring up the subject of what was bothering his friend, but he also wasn't ready to let it go.

"I don't think I'd be very good company," Reid replied, taking his eye's off the office. He pushed the chair back under the desk as he took a step backward away from his desk.

"So what. I think I've got the knack of one-sided conversations down pat from hanging around you," Morgan said lightly, in a joking tone. The words didn't have the intended effect though as he received an unamused look from his friend.

"Reid, what is it, man?"

"I don't want to talk about it, Morgan," Reid replied, stepping away from the desk and turning to head for the set of steps out of the bullpen that were behind him.

To his relief, Morgan didn't try to follow him. To avoid getting stuck in the elevator with Morgan or anyone else who might be on their way out and want to talk, Reid headed for the stairwell. Though it required going down six flights of stairs, it was worth it as he didn't want to talk to anyone right about then.

As he headed for the closest subway station, Reid thought about what JJ had told him about needing to let the relationship between him and Amber be about the two of them and not the reactions of those around him. It made a lot of sense. The relationship was about the two of them. They were the ones who had to live with any decision that was made. Still, he couldn't help but think about how it would affect those around them. People who were just as important in their lives as he and Amber were to each other.

That was one thing that he was sure of, even after these last few years of being apart, Amber was still an important person in his life. They had shared something special once upon a time. She had held out an offer of friendship when so many other people around him had just gone on with their own lives. That friendship had developed into something deeper and though the paths of their lives had taken them in separate directions, what they had didn't mean any less to him now than it did back then. The question was, did Amber feel the same way he did. JJ seemed to think the fact that she had told him about the transfer meant it did and when it came to people, JJ knew more about that subject than he did himself. And there was the fact that it seemed as though she had told him about the transfer before telling her father. Was that just because of sending the text message to him while she had called Agent Rossi or was there something significant about that fact?

Reid continued to analyze the situation as he boarded the train into D.C. Started going through any number of possible scenarios. Trying to anticipate any direction this relationship could probably take. Amber's message had said that she would call him tonight. Reid tried to think of anything she could possibly say and how he should respond to it. This call could be his only chance. His last chance to make something of the relationship he shared with her.

The lingering doubt in his head though was what Agent Rossi was going to think if they did work it out. Would he want a co-worker dating his daughter? Was that why the older agent was so distant when around him or was it something else entirely? Was Agent Rossi still just getting use to the new environment he found himself in or did he just want to keep a distance between himself and the other team members?

* * *

Agent Rossi had left the BAU a little before five that evening, stopping by to bid Hotch a good evening as he slipped out. Ever since Amber's call earlier that morning, he had been thinking about the prospect of having his daughter close again. It had been quite awhile since the two of them had been living in the same city, Amber having lived with her mother, Rossi's first wife, most of the time during her childhood. The exception to that had been during Margaret's third marriage.

Margaret had moved away from Commack to Texas, when she had gotten married a second time. He had been with the Marines at the time, and when he could get leaves he had gone to Texas to see his little girl. Despite their differences, the one thing Margaret had never given him a problem with was arranging time for him to spend with Amber, for which he was grateful. As for custody, Rossi had figured for the most part, a girl needed to be with her mother. Not to mention that his job, first with the Marines and then with the FBI, had taken him away so much while Amber was growing up that it was better that Margaret had custody. His first wife's second marriage had only lasted three years but even following her second divorce, Margaret stayed in Texas. It was there that she had met her third husband.

Not long after that wedding, Amber had started talking about wanting to come live with him. Rossi wasn't sure what had prompted the sudden request. Amber had just turned twelve, and he figured that would be a time in her life where she would rather talk to her mother about issues growing up than to talk to her father. At first, he chalked it up to her having problems at school as the requests started coming at the beginning of a new school year.

He had put it off at first because he was struggling to make his own third marriage work, the time he put in at the BAU putting a strain on that relationship. The hours he worked also raised a concern that being that his wife would be home with Amber whenever a case took him out of town, which tended to be quite often. Though Wendy had wanted kids, he didn't think she would suddenly want to become a mother to a twelve-year-old girl. The third factor was that he didn't want to get involved in yet another argument with his first wife.

Ironically, it was Wendy that encouraged him to fight for custody. He had been away when Amber had called one night, clearly upset. She had talked to Wendy and told her what was going on. When he had found out, David Rossi's first action had been to file for custody of his daughter. Amber had confessed to Wendy that her stepfather had raped her. That he had been making inappropriate comments and behavior toward her since he had married Margaret and that was what had prompted her requests to come live with him. Rossi had felt guilty about not talking to his daughter more about why she wanted to come live with him. Guilty that he hadn't done more to keep what had happened from happening. That he had left her in the environment that had led to the situation. So it was that right after Halloween of 1992, Amber had moved in with him and Wendy in his home in Virginia.

Amber had stayed with him for three years. Looking back, having Amber there was probably the only thing that had kept Wendy from walking out on him sooner. Wendy had hated him being away so much. Felt he had put the job before her. Before his own daughter. He had tried to argue against that view but his arguments felt hollow even in his own ears. Margaret had finally stopped visiting and officially divorced the jerk who had raped their daughter and Amber had gone back to Texas to finish high school with her friends. A week after Amber had gone back to Texas, Wendy had walked out on him, having had enough. After three years of having both a wife and daughter to come home to, coming home to an empty house had been made even worse. Out in Texas, Amber was making a name for herself as a high school swim star and Rossi had lost track of how many of her meets he had missed because he was out chasing the bad guys. Knowing what he was missing in his daughter's life had contributed to his decision to retire from the bureau and pursue his writing full time. At least he would have enough control over his schedule of writing and when books tours took place that he could be a part of the important events in his daughter's life.

Rossi knew that finding time to spend with his daughter was going to be hard even with them in the same are because of their jobs. Not to mention, Amber wasn't going to want to spend all her free time with her old man. He had been only too happy to open his home to her when she had asked this morning assuring her that she could stay with him until she got settled. He wouldn't mind having her just stay with him while she was stationed at Station Washington, which operated off the Bolling Air Force Base, but he knew that wasn't going to happen. Amber enjoyed her independence too much. She had lived on her own since leaving for college, even renting an apartment during her summer breaks. As soon as she got here, Amber would be looking for a place to stay other then under his roof. If he couldn't keep her under his roof though, he was at least determined to make sure that the roof that was over her head was a decent one.

Pulling into the parking lot of the Real Estate Agency he had used in the past, Rossi parked his SUV. He had called earlier that afternoon and arranged to meet with an agent at five thirty. What good was having money if you couldn't use it to help others, especially those you loved?


	4. Progress

_**Caltech, Los Angeles, CA, fall semester 1999:**_

As usual, the room in Mead Lab, where sections ten and eleven of Dr. Owens Chemistry 101 class met on Wednesday nights, was empty when Dr. Spencer Reid walked into it. There was still fifteen minutes until the class met for the lab portion of the class, but Spencer always made sure he arrived early, thinking it important that he set a good example for the students in the class.

As seemed to be the norm for him, Spencer Reid was the youngest TA at Caltech and probably the most educated. While most TA's were working toward a Master's degree, Spencer Reid was working toward not his first but his second doctorate. While he hadn't been required to TA this year, his academic advisor had felt it would be a good experience for him, giving him more time in front of a group, something that even now, after being a TA for two other classes, he found difficult.

Placing his bag on the table at the front of the room, Spencer took out the lab manual, notebook and a pencil. He placed them on the lab table, and then put the messenger bag on the floor next to his stool. Opening the lab manual to the day's experiment, Spencer started setting things up, putting out the chemicals that the students were going to need for this particular experiment. As he worked, he was aware of students coming in, most walking in with a least one friend, many of the others in groups.

Spencer heard her voice before he saw her. The TA recognized the voice of the girl he had spilled the soda on Friday night. Looking up, he saw her walk in with one of the guys that she had been with that night. As the two of them headed to a lab table in the middle of the room, the guy said something that made her laugh. Amer's laugh filled the room, sounding like music to Spencer's ears. As she sat down at the lab table, Amber looked up at the front of the room, meeting the TA's look. Spencer felt his face flush and went back to setting up for the experiment.

At six o'clock, Spencer tentatively called for the class's attention. A few near the front listened and stopped their conversations while the kids in the back continued to talk. A second call for the students attention stopped even those conversations. When he finally had the class' attention, he began to give an overview of the experiment. It didn't take long for him to get into the subject and have his enthusiasm for the subject come through. One of the things he enjoyed about being a TA was that at least some of his students had a genuine interest in the subject. Those who didn't usually at least had a passing interest in that they wanted to pass the class, thus given him a fairly attentive audience.

As he finished the overview of the experiment, the students got started on the experiment. Spencer stayed at the front of the room for a few minutes, giving the students time to get started. Once all the groups had the needed chemicals and were beginning the experiment, Spencer started walking around the room, observing what was going on, answering questions he was asked. This was the easy part of being a TA, being able to deal with the students on a more personal level rather than addressing them as a group.

Reaching the back of the room, Spencer spent some time helping a pair of two girls, Amanda Charles and Vicky Ullwater, with the experiment. He knew the two girls by name because they tended to show up at every office hour session that he held. Sometimes they came in together and others times they came in separate. Either way, the two of them always asked a whole bunch of questions and he also spent quite a bit of the lab session with them. While the two girls had enthusiasm for the class, Chemistry didn't come easy to them, and so far their grades were just borderline passing.

When the two girls had their experiment back on track, Spencer headed back up toward the front of the room, his path taking him past the lab table where Amber and her friend were working.

"I think he's interested in you," Vince was saying as he measured out one of the ingredients for the experiment.

"You need your eyes checked," Amber replied.

"You just don't want to admit that someone might be interested in you. News flash, Amber a bunch of the guys in my dorm have asked me to set them up with you. You're pretty. Guys are attracted to you, whether you believe in love or not."

"That's not love, it's lust," Amber shot back, as Vince added the powder he had measured out to the beaker.

"Call it what you want but I saw the guy's face when he looked in your direction. I'm a guy. I hang out with guys. I know what the signs are when we see a girl we like."

"Just pay attention to what your doing," Amber told him, as Vince was looking at her and not at the beaker. She didn't want to have to restart the experiment or have it not come out right, because the right amount of the powder didn't get into the beaker.

Spencer didn't hear Vince's reply, if there was one, as he moved out of hearing range. He felt a feeling of disappointment as he stepped behind the table at the front of the room. A disappointment that he couldn't explain. Was it because of what he had overheard? That was crazy. It shouldn't be any surprise that other guys found Amber attractive. Besides, even if no one else did, he wouldn't stand a chance with her nor would it be appropriate. Right now, she was one of his students. He was sure there was something in the Caltech behavior guidelines that prohibited relationships between TA and students, without even needing to look it up.

* * *

"I am so about ready to strangle Vince," Amber said as she came into the dorm room she shared with Maria following her lab session that evening. She pushed the door closed behind her as she strode into the room, tossing her backpack onto the top bunk.

"What did he do now?" Maria asked, as she stopped typing the paper she was working on and looked back over her shoulder at her friend.

"Vince seems to think that the waiter from Friday night, who also happens to be my chemistry TA, has a crush on me."

"So?"

"So? He's crazy. He's reading things into something that aren't there because he knows how I feel about relationships and wants to drive me crazy."

"Looks like he's doing a good job to me then" Maria responded, as she turned sideways in her chair. Amber was now leaning against the top frame of the bunk bed, left foot crossed over her right leg, arms folded across her chest.

"You're not helping," Amber said, exasperation evident in the tone of her voice.

"Both Vince and Mark are always teasing you about guys liking you and most of the time, it's the truth. Face it Amber, you're a pretty girl and guys are going to find you attractive whether you like it or not. Not wanting to be involved in a relationship doesn't change any of that, however it does isolate you from quite a bit of things that the rest of us experience. No, relationships don't always work. People fight, argue, and hurt each other. It's just part of life. If you try to protect yourself from those feelings though, you're isolating yourself from a whole other range of feelings. A sense of being loved. Of belonging. Of being with someone who thinks you can make no mistakes."

"I don't need any of that."

"You keep telling yourself that. Meanwhile, you're missing out on a whole lot. Besides, I still hold to what I said Friday night, I think you like the guy."

"Yeah, go ahead. Side with, Vince."

"As I think he's on the right track this time, I will thank you," Maria said turning around to face her computer once again.

"I think you're both crazy," Amber replied, as she climbed up onto the top bunk.

"And I think you're in denial," Maria shot back, as she went back to working on her assignment, seemingly ready to put an end to the current conversation. The one thing she had learned about Amber Rossi was that her best friend had a major stubborn streak. Though she would listen to what you had to say, if it went against what she thought, she wasn't going to accept it until she was good an ready to.

Amber, however, wasn't quite ready to let the conversation rest.

"He's a TA. Even if the two of you are correct, and I'm not admitting to anything, nothing can happen between us. I'm not about to get kicked out Caltech because of a sexual harassment complaint or anything in the ball park of that. Just because my father chases anyone of the opposite sex, doesn't mean I have to be like him," Amber said, as she settled herself against the wall, her legs stretched across the width of the bed. Her dad may have only been married three times, but she had lost count of the number of women she had seen him with. Not to mention the few times she had heard the topic of sexual harassment charges being brought up by her mother during one of their numerous arguments over the years. She hadn't asked either of her parents for details as she wasn't sure she wanted to know.

"From what you've told me, you have a long way to be anything like your Dad in that department. I will tell you one trait you I think you share with him," Maria replied, having met David Rossi a few times when he had visited his daughter, both back in highschool and since the two had come to Caltech. "You're as stubborn as a mule. Once you get your head set on an idea its going to take a force of nature to get you to consider any other possibilities."

Amber didn't reply. Instead she reached into her bag for the book she was reading for her Philosophies of Life class. The same class which Maria was currently writing the paper for, her roommate having finished the reading assignment the night before. Amber was close to being done and the paper wasn't due until Monday. She still felt like she had plenty of time to write the paper, though she did want to finish the reading tonight.

Amber grabbed her pillow, placed it behind her and settled back against the wall again. She opened the book to the place where she had left off, and was about to begin when Maria spoke up once again.

"I just want to say one more thing. He's only going to be your TA for this semester and I'm sure there are no rules against talking to a TA. Maybe you should get to know him before you write everything off. Maybe the two of you are ever only friends but maybe it goes further. A guy like that, I'm sure he could use a friend or two."

"What do you mean, a guy like that?"

"Well, think about it. He's either our age or younger yet he's already got at least one doctorate according to Vince. Somehow, I don't think being that smart is conducive to a lot of close friendships. Not only is he younger than his peers, but people probably feel threatened by him. And he's obviously awkward in social situation, we all saw that on Friday. My brother was only to happy to poke fun at him, and I can assure you, Mark probably isn't the only one. Chances are he has few, if any friends, and even less around here."

"I think you've been reading my father's books too much," Amber replied, seeing the truth in her friend's words but not wanting to admit to it.

"You're the one who introduced me to your father's books, back when we were seniors in highschool."

"Obviously a mistake," Amber replied briefly.

"I don't think so. If I hadn't read the books written by the legendary FBI agent David Rossi then I probably never would have decided to be a criminal justice major which I'm absolutely loving by the way."

"Great, but how about you don't use my father's book on profiling to profile me."

"I'm not profiling you, I'm profiling our waiter from Friday night. Someone who you keep claiming you have absolutely no interest in."

"Don't you have a paper to write," Amber said, wanting to put an end to the conversation. She lifted the book in her hand, and started reading.

Maria watched Amber for a few moments, and then with a smile turned back to her computer. She knew she had gotten through to her friend enough that Amber would think the situation over on her own time. Maria was sure that given time, Amber would see the truth of what she had told her. The question was, if Amber would allow herself to admit to that truth.

* * *

Following her conversation with Maria, Amber Rossi soon found herself looking for Spencer on campus in places other than the lab session or when he was at work. Both places were too crowded and inappropriate to bring up a casual conversation. She thought about going to one of his office sessions and asking questions about an assignment. Afraid that the ruse might be seen through held her back from trying it. Amber understood the things that were being taught in the class and her grades reflected that. She was pretty sure her chemistry TA would realize she really didn't need answers to any questions she might think up.

And so the weeks passed, and she had little contact with Dr. Spencer Reid. Sure she saw him in the lab or at the Sun and Surf Café but that was it. She never saw him outside of those settings. Not at the home football games she went to, to support Mark. Not in the library when she was looking for books for class projects. Nor as she walked around campus on her way to classes or swim practices. Not even during the time she spent on the beach while on duty as a lifeguard.

It was approaching the end of October. Halloween was less than a week away. There had been talk among Amber's group of friends of going to a huge Halloween party on campus this coming Friday. Though she had thought it would be fun, Amber had declined. The party fell the day before her first scrimmage swim meet. Somehow, she didn't think her coach would appreciate her being out late the night before. Mark was in the same boat, having an away game to go to the following day. The group had decided to skip the party and instead do their own celebration the following Tuesday, which was Halloween.

Talk of the party was all over campus. What costumes people were going to wear. Who was going with who. By the time her last class got out at three o'clock on Thursday afternoon Amber was ready to escape all of that. Changing into some workout clothes, grabbing a bottle of water and her cell phone, she had got in her car and headed for one of the Las Angeles beaches. She tried to job at least four times a week along with swimming laps every other morning, though since swim practice had official started she had cut back on her own workouts. She normally hung around campus when she jogged but as the afternoon was beautiful and she didn't have anywhere to be that evening, she opted for a change of scenery.

Even in October, the beach wasn't completely empty. Couples strolled along the beach, paying more attention to each other than what was going on around them. Mothers watched little kids who were enjoying building a sand castle or other endeavor in the sand. Out in the ocean, surfers in wet suits rode or attempted to ride the waves in. That was one activity that Amber had attempted one time right after coming to LA. One of the other lifeguard candidates during rookie school had tried to teach her, and though she had made numerous attempts, she had never been able to successfully get to a standing position. After being rescued by a lifeguard, who also happened to be helping with the rookie school, after one failed attempt when she had hit her head on the board when she fell off, she had sworn never to try it again. There were also numerous other joggers enjoying their work out on the beach.

Amber looked down at her watching she was nearing the twenty-seven minute mark of her jog, which was her goal time. Deciding to get a start back to the parking lot where she had parked her car, she turned and started back in the direction she had just come from, her footprints retracing the ones she had left there moments before. When she had reached her time goal, Amber slowed to a walk. Twisting the top off the water bottle she carried, she took a long drink of water, before twisting the cap back on. After walking a few minutes, she stopped to stretch. Following a short cool down jog and the walk back to where her car was parked, Amber's breathing was back to normal.

As she approached the path that traced the beach, watching for the roller bladers who were enjoying the afternoon, Amber noticed a familiar figure sitting at one of the outdoor chess tables that occupied the space between the path and the beach. Though he seemed to be concentrating hard on the game, he was playing alone. Without really thinking about it, Amber found herself walking in that direction.

"Whose winning?" Amber asked, as she came to a stop beside the cement table with the chessboard built into it.

"Well, as I'm really only trying to play out possible scenarios to see what will and won't work, no one is actually winning. However, in the conventional sense, I guess you could say that white is winning as the white pieces will have the black pieces in checkmate in three moves," Spencer Reid replied, without looking up to see who had asked the question.

"You always play alone?" Amber asked.

"Most of the time," Spencer said moving a black rook. "I don't often have someone to play against," he replied, glancing up. "You're Amber, right?" he said, the words sounding like the statement they were and not a question.

"That's right, Dr. Reid," Amber replied, feeling the need to use the guy's title out of respect for him being her chemistry TA and the fact that she didn't really know him that well.

"We're not in a classroom," Spencer told her. "You can call me Spencer if you'd like," he told her. She nodded and an awkward silence fell between the two of them. Spencer finally broke it. "Do you play?" he asked, indicating the chess board in front of him.

"My Dad taught me awhile back though its been sometime since I've actually played. He always won and I guess I got discouraged. I'm not even sure I remember all of the rules."

"I could go over them with you if you're interested," he told her.

Amber shrugged her shoulders. Maybe she could pick up some tips and the next time she went up against her Dad, she might actually be able to beat him. She sat down in the empty seat across from him as he started resetting the board. She placed the almost empty bottle of water on the table to her right, and listened as Spencer started going over the rules of the game. She was actually surprised by how much she did remember. After wards, the two of them started a game. It didn't take Amber long to figure out that she was totally outmatched. Still, she was enjoying herself as well as getting some practice in.

The two of them played two games, Spencer easily winning both of them. At the end of the second game Amber became aware of the fading light. She glanced at her watch. It was quarter six and the sun was starting to set on the horizon, sunset being around six o'clock. Though she didn't have anything to do, she was starting to get hungry.

"Do you work this evening?" Amber found herself asking as she helped Spencer pick up the chess pieces and place them in a ziplock bag he had taken out of his messenger bag.

"Ah, no. Not tonight."

"Want to get something to eat before heading back to campus? I mean if you don't have any other plans?"

"Um, yeah. I don't have anywhere I need to be," Spencer replied, nervously, managing to drop the bag of chess pieces on the ground. As he had already sealed the bag, none of them fell out. Leaning over, he retrieved the bag and stuffed it quickly into his messenger bag.

"Did you drive down here?" Amber asked as they both got to their feet.

"Ah, no. I tend to use the buses to get around," Spencer replied, placing the strap of his bag over his head and settling it on his left shoulder.

"My car is this way then," Amber replied.

As the two of them headed for where she had parked, Amber considered if they were crossing any TA/student barriers with this little outing. In the end, she decided no. She was just being friendly toward another human being. What was wrong with sharing a meal with someone? It wasn't like she had asked him out on a date or anything. They would share a quick meal together, maybe get to know each other a little and then she would drop him off where ever he was staying. Hadn't Maria said the guy seemed like the kind of person who could use some friends.

By the time they had reached her pick-up truck, she had decided not to over analyze anything and just enjoy the evening. With any luck, she wouldn't run into any of her friends while she was out, not wanting to field any questions or deal with any teasing that might come from them.


	5. Burn Out

_**2007 -Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak, Alaska:**_

Lt. Amber Rossi stood on the tarmac and watched as the paramedics slowly wheeled the stretcher to the waiting ambulance. There was no hurry in their movements, because there was no need. The blanket completely covered the body of the fisherman that had been pulled from the Bering Sea. There had been no signs of life when the body had been found floating in the ocean.

The fisherman, Greg Montague, had fallen overboard while he and his crew had been setting crab pots. Without a survival suit, his only real chance had been his crew managing to pluck him from the sea within minutes of him falling in. It hadn't happened. Between the choppy seas, wind-blown rain and the fading light as the sun quickly set, the crew of the Aquatic Star had lost track of their crewman. By the time Lt. Rossi and her flight crew had arrived in the area, Greg Montague had already been in the Bering Sea too long to make survival even a remote possibility.

"We did what we could and at least his family will have the body to give him a proper burial," Commander Lou Harris told her, putting a comforting hand on Lt. Rossi's shoulder. "It was the best we could do this time."

Lt. Rossi nodded, knowing her commanding officer was correct. There was no certainties in this job, especially when working in an environment such as the Bering Sea. No matter how fast they were or how hard they tried, sometimes mother nature was just faster. They couldn't save everyone. How many times had she heard those words? How many times had she said those words to someone else in comfort?

Still, knowing the truth and accepting the inevitable seemed like two vastly different things. This wasn't the first time she had pulled a lifeless corpse from the Bering Sea but with the upcoming transfer, she had been hoping there wouldn't be another time. That hadn't happened, though with a little luck, perhaps this would be the last.

The coastguard rescue swimmer watched as the paramedics loaded the stretcher into the back of the ambulance. On their faces, Amber saw the same emotion that she was feeling. The look of defeat. Unfortunately, it wasn't a feeling that she had a monopoly on. Knowing that brought little comfort to her. As the doors shut on the blanket covered body, Lt. Rossi finally turned away and headed across the tarmac to the main building, the last of her flight crew to do so.

Inside, she went to the locker room, changing out of her survival suit, showering and putting on a new uniform. A half hour after landing back at Air Station Kodiak, Lt. Rossi was standing outside of Commander Harris' office. Reaching out, she rapped on the door.

"Come in," Commander Harris called from within.

Turning the door knob, Lt. Rossi opened the door and walked slowly into the office. Closing the door behind her, she walked over to the desk, assuming the at ease position in front of the Commander's desk.

"Have a seat, Lt.," Commander Harris said, gesturing to the chairs across the desk from him. Lt. Rossi took a seat in the closest chair, but didn't relax. "What's on your mind, Lieutenant?" Harris asked.

Lt. Rossi took a deep breath and let it out slowly before she started speaking. "It's about the transfer, sir."

"We talked about this, Lieutenant. This transfer is in everybody's best interest, especially yours. This job can get to anyone. I've been trained to see the signs and what I just saw out there, on the tarmac when we came back, only reinforces the fact that this is the best thing for you. You need a break from this. No one is saying you can't ever come back."

Lt. Rossi was shaking her head as she listened to her superior officer. They had already had this conversation and she was in agreement with him and the psychologist. She needed a break from living out here in a remote area. At being the only thing that stood between some nameless victim and certain death. She had seen too much death. Had pulled too many lifeless bodies from the frigid waters up here. It was time to walk away before she lost herself. Walk away and regroup. Time to make a difference somewhere else.

"I'm in total agreement with that sir. That wasn't what I wanted to discuss."

"Oh," Commander Harris replied, relieved that he didn't have to have that conversation again. Lt. Rossi was one of the best rescue swimmers he had either trained or worked with. He hated to lose her. To have to bring in another rescue swimmer that would need to train with the team and figure out how to fit in with them all. Unfortunately, it was necessary. It was better to try and take the steps necessary to prevent the eventual burn-out that he could see coming. He knew the signs. Had seen them way too often during his years with the Coast Guard. "What did you want to discuss then?"

"I wanted to talk to you about when it would be a good time to inform the others that I will be leaving. I just haven't known when to break the news to them. I mean on one hand, I tell them and it could be a distraction. We'll be working with that hanging over all of our heads instead of just you and I knowing about it. If I wait to tell them right before I leave, then its going to come as a surprise to them at the very least."

Commander Harris nodded. "I see where you're coming from. Personally, taking into account how close a flight crew tends to get to one another after the conditions we face out there, I think I would rather know ahead of time whether one of my team is going to be leaving rather than being blind sided with the news right before they left."

"That's how I would feel to," Lt. Rossi admitted. It was the decision she had wanted to make but had been hoping for support. They were all professionals. They all knew a transfer could come in for any one of them at any time and break up the team. She knew she would be able to keep her head in the game while out on a mission if any of her team had a pending transfer looming over their head and she believed that her fellow teammates were capable of the same thing. Still, she really didn't want to be the one to be delivering that news.

"So would you like me to tell them?" Commander Harris asked, as if reading her mind.

"Would you mind?"

"Not at all. I'll break the news during our morning meeting come Monday morning. Meanwhile, why don't you head out of here and try to enjoy what is left of the weekend. With any luck we won't get any more calls for our services," Harris said, this weekend being one of those weekends that his crew were on call. So far this was the second mission they had been recalled to base for and it was only Saturday afternoon. Harris sincerely hoped there would be no more.

"Yes, sir," Lt. Rossi said getting to her feet and leaving the office.

The rest of her crew mates had already vacated the premises, headed back to whatever they had been doing. Retrieving her keys from her locker, Lt. Amber Rossi followed suit, leaving Air Station Kodiak for the second time that day, the first being at two o'clock this morning. It didn't take her long to drive to the boarding house she was staying at in Kodiak.

Amber had thought about getting a bigger place more than once during her tour up here in Alaska. She had never got much further than thinking about it, only ever taking a look at one apartment. Though more room would have been nice, it also would have meant more housework as well as a greater feeling of isolation.

In the city of a little over six thousand people, there could already be a sense of isolation for the members of the Coast Guard. Fishing was Kodiak's major industry and to the fisherman who fished the waters surrounding Kodiak island, the United States Coast Guard were everything from the law enforcers to their saviors. They were treated with respect but often held at a distance. After all, you didn't want a minor rule violation to get mentioned in casual conversation and get a fine for something that otherwise would have gone unnoticed.

The boarding house Amber stayed at was run by a lady in her early sixties, Mrs. Eve Franklin. Her father, George Morton, had been a fisherman until he retired and then had lived his life out here on Kodiak island. Mrs. Franklin was a widow of twenty years, her husband having been lost to the sea when his boat went down. Ben Franklin had worked as a deck hand on George Morton's boat, having come looking for his part of the Alaskan fisherman's bounty. It was how he had met his wife, as Eve had sometimes accompanied her father during trips. When she didn't go out with him she was always there to meet the boat at the docks when they returned.

Eve and Ben had quickly fallen in love, Ben staying in Kodiak during the off season instead of heading back to his own family. Two years after they had first met, the two were married during a June wedding on Kodiak. Their's was a life of love, though also of many trials. Eve lost two children before their son Jake was born. Jake had never had the blood of a fisherman in him, and had left for NYU upon graduating highschool. A lawyer now with a New York City Firm, Jake Franklin kept in touch with his mother, though seldom came to visit.

Though her son had invited her to come live with him and his family, Eve couldn't bring herself to leave Kodiak. This was her home. This was where her heart belonged. With the toughness that all the citizens of Kodiak showed, Eve had went about fixing up and opening the Northern Lights Boarding House. It boasted five rooms, with two shared bathrooms upstairs. Downstairs was the communal dinning room, living room, kitchen, and a small library and study area. Eve had even recently been able to renovate the basement and furnish it with some work out equipment for her boarders.

Currently, the Northern Lights Boarding House was at full capacity, and all the boarders had been there for the past year. Mrs. Franklin was a kind and fair landlady and they all adored her, from the fifty-something Dr. Marcus Martin who taught Philosophy at the University of Alaska to the eighteen year old Macy Days, who was a student at the aforementioned University. She had a few rules, necessary to keep order and set times for meals. That never stopped her from coming up with something for one of the boarding house's occupants to eat when their schedules caused them to miss the appointed meal times, though the kitchen was open for all of them to use.

Outside of her flight crew, her fellow boarders and land lady made up Amber Rossi's social circle here in Kodiak. She enjoyed discussing philosophy with Dr. Martin. Hearing about Lloyd Russell's day at the sporting goods shop that he owned and run. Give advice to the young Miss Days who was experiencing a lot of new things in her first year of college. Or catch a movie or go for a hike with Deputy Christine Dardin, a local Kodiak police officer around Amber's age. She was going to miss all of these people when she left Kodiak, news which had already been broken to them all, and they were the reason she had never found a place of her own. The thought of going home to an empty apartment or house after the hours she put in at Air Station Kodiak just didn't appeal to her.

"Ah, there you are, darling," Mrs. Franklin said as Amber walked into the boarding house that Saturday afternoon. "Come into the kitchen and I'll get you something to eat as you missed lunch."

"Thank-you, Mrs. Franklin, but I'm not really hungry. I just think I'm going to go upstairs and relax for a little while."

"Of course, dear. You must be tired with going back and forth between the base today. I'll call you when dinner is ready then."

"I appreciate it," Amber said, kissing the old lady's cheek as she walked past the landlady and up the stairs to her room.

Reaching her room, Amber flopped down on top of her made bed. Interlacing fingers behind her head she stared up at the ceiling. She was tired, but not a sleepy tired. It was more of a mental exhaustion. One that she had been aware of for the last few months and wondered if the upcoming changes in her life would cure it.

She had completed the coast guard rescue swimmer training, an 18 week long "A" school followed by 4 weeks of EMT training in Petaluma, CA, in mid September of 2004. Her first posting following that training had been to Air Station Sitka, Alaska. She felt as though she had been thrown right into the fire, as the conditions in the area that Air Station Sitka covered was considered the most demanding flight environment for Coast Guard aircraft operations. She had served there a year before being transferred to Air Station Kodiak following the retirement of one of the rescue swimmers here. That was three years of living in Alaska, an environment different from those she had known growing up, even though she had lived in several different places. Amber had always felt isolated from the rest of the world up here in the state separated from the rest of the costal United States. Maybe it was that isolation that was getting to her. Or maybe it was the people that they had been unable to save over the years. Victims whose faces sometimes haunted her dreams.

Whatever it was, despite leaving behind friends that she was going to miss, Amber Rossi was looking forward to leaving Alaska behind. This may have been where she had lived these last few years, but it wasn't home. She wasn't even sure where she would call home anymore. It use to be Texas, but though she had visited her mother over the years, Amber knew she had stopped considering that home back in college. Back when she had chosen to stay in LA following the school year ending after her first year in Caltech.

Amber's cell phone rang, breaking the quiet that surrounded her. Unlacing her fingers, but not moving from her laying position, Amber reached for her cell phone that was clipped to a belt loop on her jeans. Glancing at the screen, she let out a sigh, as she answered the call and put the phone to her ear.

"Hello, Mother," Amber said into the phone. She had tried several times to reach her mother, who still lived in Texas, since finding out about the transfer. After a few attempts, Amber had finally just left her mother a voice message. Apparently, she had finally gotten the message.

"You finally get out of Alaska and where do you get transferred, Washington D.C. I'm sure your father had something to do with that."

"Dad, had nothing to do with my transfer," Amber replied. "He didn't even know about it until I called him yesterday."

"It's bad enough that he corrupted you and enticed you into joining a service branch."

"Mom the Coast Guard was my decision, not Dad's. He never twisted my arm to join unlike someone who insisted that I go to college after high school. I would have joined the Marines right out of high school if you hadn't begged me to go to college. I thought giving in to that would have made you happy. I guess I was wrong."

"I wanted you to have a career that would allow you to have a family. I would have thought after you saw what your father's career did to our family . . ."

"Don't go laying all the blame for our broken family on Dad's shoulders. I may not know much about marriage but I do know that it takes two people to make it work. Dad had his reason's for joining the Marines and you couldn't handle that, which is fine. I can understand that, especially after serving in the Coast Guard these last few years, but it wasn't all his fault. You never even tried to make it work."

Amber cut herself short before she kept going. She had never cared for any of her stepfathers but getting into an argument about them wasn't going to get her anywhere. Over the years, Amber had developed her own opinions about the problems with her parents love life. Her mother had just wanted someone to take care of her. To be around all the time so she could lean on him. Her Dad joining the Marines had taken that away from her, so she left and then settled down with the first guy who came along that offered her that security. Her mother couldn't handle the idea of being alone and so had always been with someone. Even now, her mother was living with a guy, whom Amber didn't know very well, nor did she have any desire to.

Her father on the other hand didn't have the problem of needing someone else to feel whole. Amber's mother had always blamed her independent streak and stubbornness on her father's side of the family. Despite what people who didn't know him well thought, Amber also knew that her father cared deeply about other people. He had always been close to his parents and brother and sister, as well as his siblings families in later years. That caring wasn't just limited to people who were related to him by blood.

It was that trait that had lead him first to law enforcement, then the marines and afterwards the FBI. He wanted to help other people and he had. In his pursuit to help others though, David Rossi often carelessly overlooked the needs of those closest to him. It wasn't intentional, but more of being blinded to the little things by his ability to see the bigger picture. His family was often put second, something that her mother and her two step-mothers hadn't been too keen upon. Amber herself had even fallen victim to being placed second to her father's career on several occasions but when she had really needed him, he had always been there.

Neither of her parents had been good role models when it came to relationships and despite being put in between the two of them more times than she could count, Amber knew that both of her parents loved her. Still, it came no surprise to her that her ability to have a loving relationship was suspect at best. Sure, she had been on a few dates over the years. Had guys tell her that they loved her. None of them had amounted to much or lasted long with the exception of her relationship with Spencer Reid. They had been together for almost three years before they had decided that their career prospects just weren't going to allow them to stay together at that point in time. For Amber, it had been her out. Her way to escape from a relationship that was starting to scare her because for the first time in her life, she felt that she could have actually told a guy that she loved him. She hadn't though. She had held back and her and Spencer had gone their separate ways, though they had kept in touch over the years.

Now, it seemed as though the course of their lives were now bringing the two of them back together. Amber had wondered more than once if it meant that they were suppose to be together. That perhaps this time they could get their relationship right. That this time she would find the courage to tell him that she did love him, even after these last few years of being apart.

"There you go taking his side again," her mother said into the phone.

"I'm not on anyone's side. I told you years ago that I was tired of being put in between you and Dad," Amber told her. "Look, Mom, I didn't call you to get into an argument about this. I'm going to have a week free between my last day here at Kodiak and when I need to report to Station Washington. I was hoping I could take the indirect route and come see you for a few days."

"I'd love to see you," Margaret Carlton replied, sounding happy for the first time since the conversation had started.

"Great," Amber said, and started talking details with her mother about a visit to Texas in between her postings.

_**Washington D.C. Area:**_

Derek Morgan steadily rolled the paint onto the walls of one of the houses that he was currently flipping, enjoying the music that came out of the boom box sitting on the counter in the kitchen. This particular project was just about competed. All that was left was the painting and putting up the cabinet doors in the kitchen as the fixtures he had wanted for the project had just recently came in. Deciding to work on the cabinets in between coats of paint, he had started his day with painting the downstairs of the two bedroom townhouse he was working on. He had already put the first coat of paint on the living room walls, and was now working on the dinning room. Over the music he heard his cell phone ring.

Morgan place the paint roller in the paint tray, checked his hands for paint and then took his phone off of his belt. Looking at the screen he saw Reid's name and number there on the screen.

"About time you called me back, Kid," Morgan said, as he put the phone to his ear.

"Nice talking to you too," Reid said in response to his friend's unconventional greeting. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

"I was hoping you'd come have a drink with me tonight. I need to get out and unwind and I wanted some company."

"I'm not so sure I would be good company," Reid answered, his voice sounding hesitant.

"Just one good reason for you to come hang out with me as it'll put you in a better mood," Morgan replied, turning his excuse into a reason for him to join him. "You know me, Kid, I don't like taking no for an answer. It'll be easier for you to just give in now."

Reid sighed, the noise finding its way through the phone. "Fine. What time?" Reid asked.

"I'll pick you up at seven," Morgan told him. "Of course if you want to come help me out at this house . . ."

Reid laughed before Morgan got any further. "I'm surprised you're even venturing in that direction after the last chance that I tried to give you help. I think I ended up making more work for you."

"True, but it was entertaining at least."

"No thanks. I'll leave the construction work to you," Reid told him. "Besides, I'm working on an article for one of the chemistry journals."

"Do I even want to know what it is about?"

"Probably not," Reid replied, knowing his friend's interest in chemistry had been limited to getting him past the class in both high school and college. "I'll see you this evening."

"Okay," Morgan said ending the call. He clipped the phone back onto his belt and glanced at his watch. He still had some time before the real estate agent was stopping by with the guy who wanted to see the house.

Normally, Morgan wouldn't be bothering with trying to sell the house before he had completed work on it, giving that his job could keep him away for days at a time and so giving an accurate deadline of when something needed to be done by was a skill that was a foreign concept to him. This circumstance had been different though. The real estate agent he normally sold his houses through had called him last night saying that a colleague had a client who was looking for a house to buy but was unclear as to a deadline for when the deal had to be closed by. She had wanted to know if he had any properties that were close to being completed that he would be interested in showing. This house was the only one even close to being finished and so he had agreed to let the guy come take a look at the property early this afternoon.

Picking up the paint roller, Morgan went back to painting the wall. He had picked an off white for the room as he tended to keep the colors in the properties he painted soft neutral colors so that it was easier to decorate for whoever bought the place. He worked steadily and before long had finished painting the room. Leaving both the dinning room, living room and entry hall to dry, Morgan headed for the kitchen to start on the work there. He was half-way through putting up the cabinet doors when he heard the doorbell. Morgan put down his tools, and reached over to turn the radio off. Leaving his work, he headed for the front door.

Reaching the entry hall, he saw through the screen door a woman standing on the front stoop. She was wearing a business suit with a knee length skirt, and her hair was pulled up into a neat bun. Morgan figured she was the real estate agent. Behind her, he saw someone that he hadn't expected to see this weekend, his new teammate, David Rossi.

Morgan reached the front door, and opened it.

"Ann Davis, I'm the real estate agent that talked to you on the phone," the woman said immediately. "This is my client, Mr. Rossi."

"We've met," Rossi supplied.

"Come on in," Morgan said, standing aside to let the two of them into the house. "I've been painting today so I'd stay away from the walls on the first floor. I'm sure Mrs. Clark told you that I wasn't quite done with the renovations on the property."

"Yes, she did. Right now Mr. Rossi is just looking to see what is out on the market. He's not planning on making any decisions right away. It looks like you've got a lot of the work done."

"Yes I have. It's mostly the painting and some odds and ends I need to finish up on this property," Morgan replied. He was curious as to what his co-worker was looking at properties for but figured right then wasn't the time to ask. Somehow Rossi didn't strike him as the type that would be interested in renting out houses.

Morgan showed the two around the house, answering questions as they came up. They had just finished the tour when Mrs. Davis' phone rang. Excusing herself she stepped outside to answer it giving Morgan a chance to talk to Rossi alone.

"This property seems a little below your means and you don't strike me as the type that would want the hassle of rental properties," Morgan said, fishing for an answer to satisfy his curiosity.

"Right on both accounts. I'm doing a bit of scouting for my daughter. She's with the Coast Guard and is being transferred down this way. One of the reasons I'm not making any decisions yet. I need to talk things over with her first, especially as I'm sure I'm going to meet some resistance with the offer of helping her out with a house."

"I take it she's got a stubborn streak like her father then," Morgan commented.

"You could say that," Rossi said, with a small smile. "I was surprised to see you here," he commented, fishing for explanations himself.

Morgan shrugged. "Hobby of mine. I pick up run-down properties, fix them up, and then sell them. Course with the work load at the BAU, renovations can sometimes take awhile."

"Not exactly the kind of task most would consider a hobby," Rossi commented.

Morgan shrugged. It wasn't the first time he had heard that particular comment. "I can work on them at my own pace and I find the physical activity relaxing. Never have cared much for just sitting around."

Before anything else could be said between the two co-workers, Mrs. Davis came back into the house. After thanking Morgan for showing them the property, she and Rossi said good-bye and headed off to look at another prospect. Alone in the town house once again, Morgan headed back for the kitchen to finish hanging the cabinet doors. Walking toward the kitchen, he glanced down at his watch. It looked as though the second coat of paint was going to have to wait until another day so he could get ready to meet up with Reid. After the day before, he was still hoping he could get Reid to talk about whatever it was that was bothering him. Morgan had thought Reid had finally been adjusting to Gideon being gone but perhaps he had been mistaken. Or maybe it was something else altogether. Whatever the case, Morgan hoped he could get Reid to talk to him.


	6. The Things That Shape Our Lives

_**Caltech, Los Angeles, CA, mid-November 1999:**_

Amber was working on one of her rare shifts now that the peak season for the LA beaches had passed. With less people on the beaches, most of whom chose to stay out of the cooler waters of the winter months, the number of lifeguards on the schedule had been cut back. This worked well as November marked the beginning of the competitive swim season for Amber. This Friday evening though, Amber was working, pulling a shift on one of the LA county rescue boats.

Amber and Jonathan, her partner for the day, had responded to a Mayday from one of the charter party boats that operated in the area. A fire had broken out on the boat and the limited crew could not get it under the control. The fire was still burning and the last report from the captain of the boat was that passengers were seeking refuge in the water.

"Coast Guard is on route to assist as are two other of our boats," Amber told Jonathan as she ended the radio call.

"Good. Hopefully, this boat had enough life jackets for all people on board like they were suppose to and those who have abandoned the boat have the life jackets. Our priority are those who are already in the water. Look for people who are in trouble or who don't have life jackets."

"Understood," Amber said, as she pulled the zipper of her wet suit up the rest of the way.

It wasn't long before the boat could be seen in the distance. Amber slipped the strap of the rescue can over her head, as her eyes scanned the approaching scene. Black smoke rose from the stationary boat. Every so often someone could be seen jumping from the deck, deciding that they would be better off taking their chances in the water over the deck of the burning deck. Others, were throwing life jackets down to those in the water who had jumped in without them.

Jonathan got on the loud speaker, trying to reassure everyone that everything was going to be okay. Telling them that help was on the way and that they would get them out of the water shortly. Amber scanned the crowd closest to her, looking for anyone that might be in immediate trouble. Though she saw a lot of frightened faces, everyone she saw were wearing life jackets and until the Coast Guard Cutter got on scene, would be okay.

A hysterical voice above the others calling for help caught Amber's attention. Looking in that direction she saw a woman yelling and waving her hand in the air. Others around her were trying to get the attention of the lifeguard boat to. Amber could tell there was no way that they could get the boat safely through the crowd of people to the woman.

"Jonathan, I'm going in," Amber told her partner as she readied to dive into the ocean.

"Be careful," Jonathan told her.

Amber nodded, before she dove into the ocean and started in the direction of the hysterical woman. As she swam Amber stayed aware of the people in the water around her, knowing that one panicked victim could take her under.

"My little girl! She went under! She can't swim well!" the woman screamed as Amber got closer. She could hear other approaching boats and the whirling of helicopter rotors overhead.

"I'll find her," Amber told her. Seeing that the woman was not wearing a life jacket, Amber pulled the rescue can strap over her head and thrust the can in the woman's direction. "Hold onto this," Amber instructed before diving beneath the surface.

Looking around the murky depths, Amber didn't have much hope of actually locating the child. She wasn't sure how deep the area they were in was, but she couldn't see the bottom. Amber searched for as long as she could. With her lungs screaming for fresh air, Amber started toward the surface when she noticed a still figure, sinking downwards. Amber started in that direction, trying to ignore the pain in her lungs, she was determined to reach the kid. Finally, she had to admit defeat and kicked to the surface, determined to make another attempt. On her way up, she saw someone else making their way down. Amber pointed in the direction she had come, letting them know where the victim was. The other swimmer nodded and continued downward as Amber kicked to the surface.

As soon as her head broke the surface, Amber drew in a deep breath of air.

"She didn't find her!" she heard a hysterical voice scream.

Turning her head, she saw one of her fellow lifeguards were now in the water with the woman whose daughter was under the water. Amber wasn't about to tell the woman how close she had been to her daughter. Instead, taking in another deep breath of air, she dove back under.

She met the other rescuer as they were heading up with the still form of the girl. Relief flooded through her, as the two swimmers headed back up. Reaching the surface, Amber immediately looked around for the closest boat. She saw one of the life guard boats not far away.

"Over there," she told the other swimmer, which she now realized was one of the Coast Guard Personnel.

Reaching the boat, Amber climbed on board while the lifeguard on the boat helped pull the little girl on board.

"You got her?" the Coast Guard swimmer asked.

"Yeah," the life guard replied as he laid the girl on the bottom of the boat. He and Amber started assessing the little girl.

"She's not breathing," Amber said, just before she started mouth-to-mouth.

"I got a pulse," the other lifeguard replied.

* * *

Amber felt exhausted as she walked into the Sun and Surf Café. The rumbling of her stomach was the one thing that kept her from heading right back to the dorm. Looking around, it didn't take her long to spot Maria, Chelsea and Vince in a booth not far from the front door. As she walked toward the table, the three of them started clapping.

"You made the news this evening," Maria explained, seeing Amber's confused look. "They got a shot of you giving mouth-to-mouth to that little girl."

"It wasn't just me out there. Besides, it was the Coast Guard swimmer that was able to reach her," Amber told them as she slid into the booth next to Maria. "We would have been overwhelmed if the Coast Guard hadn't been there to help," she continued. "It's amazing how well they can coordinate a rescue operation like that even with working with lifeguards who they don't normally work with."

"Sounds like they really made an impression on you," Vince commented, as he signaled to their waitress.

"It was definitely and eye opening experience," Amber told him as the waitress appeared at their table.

"Are you ready to order, now?" the waitress asked cheerfully, as Maria, Chelsea, and Vince had waited for Amber before they had ordered themselves.

The four friends placed their orders and wanting to avoid the previous subject resuming, Amber brought up their current English assignment, as they all had the same class. The distraction worked as talk of the rescue was forgotten. They were still talking about the assignment when their food was brought out.

As Vince waited for Chelsea to finish with the ketchup so he could use it, he glanced up at the side of the café he was facing. He spotted Dr. Reid taking an order from one of the tables he was covering.

"Hey, Amber, too bad you weren't sitting over there," Vince said nodding in Reid's direction. "You could get a soda bath."

Amber tossed one of her fries in his direction as retaliation for the comment.

"He's a nice guy. Be nice," Amber told him.

"I forgot you've gotten friendly with our TA," Vince commented. "It's a good thing you're good at Chemistry or people might think you had an ulterior motive for hanging out with him."

"Everyone needs a few friends, especially in a big city like this," Amber commented.

As far as she could tell, the only friend Spencer had in the area was his roommate Ethan. Though she hadn't met Ethan yet, Spencer had mentioned him a few times in the conversations they had over the last few weeks.

"Hey, I told you to invite him along on the bike ride we've got planned for Sunday. Which reminds me, is he coming?"

"Yeah, he is though I'm starting to wonder if I should have invited him or not. If you and Mark plan on teasing him . . . "

"I'll be on my best behavior," Vince said, interrupting her. "I'll also make sure to keep Mark in line."

"Good luck with that," Maria commented.

"Thanks," Vince said, knowing exactly what she meant. Though Mark was a decent guy, he liked to kid around and sometimes he went to far without realizing it.

As the friends continued with their meal, the conversation changed from their English class to their planned outing in a couple of days and exactly what area they wanted to cover.

_**Caltech, Los Angeles, CA, December 1999:**_

The night was breezy as Amber and Vince made their way across campus to take their Chemistry final. For Amber it was her last final of the semester. Vince had one last final the following morning for his History of American Music class.

"So have you decided what you're going to be doing for the Christmas break?" Vince asked.

"Not yet. Maria has invited me to spend it with her family, so there is that option. I haven't called my Dad yet to see what he's up to, though he might have plans of his own as I spent Thanksgiving with him and he was expecting me to spend Christmas with my mother. My other option is to just find a hotel room near-by and hang out in LA over the holidays."

A week ago, her mother had informed her that she and Ned, her current husband, were going on a two week cruise over the Christmas holidays. Her mother had invited her along of course but Amber had no desire to spend two weeks cooped up on a cruise ship with her mother and step-father. She had politely declined the offer.

"Spend Christmas alone?" Vince asked. "That doesn't sound like much fun to me."

"Believe me, it's preferable to spending it on a cruise ship with my mother and step-father. I don't mind being around them but I want to be able to get away when necessary. You can't exactly walk out the front door when someone gets on your nerves when your in the middle of the ocean."

"I've got another option for you. My brother and I are going to Vegas for two weeks while my parents go on a second honey-moon. Why don't you join us?"

"Your brother won't mind you inviting me along?" Amber asked as they headed up the front steps of the building. Reaching the door, she pulled it opened and let Vince enter before her.

"Not at all. He's bringing his latest girlfriend along. It'll even things out and give me someone to split the cost of the hotel room with," Vince added with a wink.

"Should have known there would be a catch," Amber commented with a smile. "I'll think about it. I'll let you know tomorrow."

"Okay. You're done with the semester after this final right?" Vince asked as they strode down the hallway to the lecture hall the final was being held in.

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, I was planning on starting the drive up to Vegas tomorrow night. Beat the mad rush out of here when the semester officially ends the following day. That's if you want to tag along that is."

The two friend's entered the lecture hall. There was still ten minutes until the final exam started, and the room was only about half full.

"Okay, but I think I'll follow you up in my truck so I don't have to worry about finding some place to leave it while I'm gone," Amber told him as they took seats in a row about midway toward the front of the classroom.

"Suit yourself," Vince replied. "Sounds to me like you're already planning on coming," he added settling down in a seat leaving an empty one between him and Amber.

"All this talk is just theoretical right now," Amber told him. "I'll give you a definite answer tomorrow by lunch time."

"Okay. We'll talk details over lunch tomorrow then," Vince said, convinced that his friend would decide to accompany him to Las Vegas. He was looking forward to having someone under twenty-one along on the trip as he was sure his brother and his girlfriend would want to spend some time in the casinos or nightclubs while they were there. Perhaps it would keep him out of getting in trouble from trying to sneak in where he didn't belong, which was what he had been planning on trying.

The two friends continued chatting while more of their classmates filed into the room. Eventually the ten minutes had passed and one of the three TA's at the front of the class called for attention and then started addressing the class, Spencer and the other TA more than happy to take a step back and let him address the class.

Other than the group bike ride, Amber hadn't seen much of Spencer outside of lab sessions. Though she usually saw him at the Sun and Surf Café when she stopped in, because he was working, there wasn't much opportunity to talk. As the swimming season heated up, it started taking up more of Amber's free time. Despite that thought, she had managed to meet him a couple of times down at the beach to play chess. She had yet to beat him at the game, but she was learning things during the matches. Still, there was something awkward about the relationship. Amber was willing to chalk it up to the distance imposed due to the student and TA relationship. She couldn't help but wonder if they would meet up again when they all returned to campus for the spring semester or if they were destined to go their separate directions after this class.

As she took the test paper from the student on her right, Amber forced herself to put those thoughts aside. Right then she had a test to concentrate on. She took one of the exams and then passed the pile to Vince on her left. Taking a deep calming breath, Amber opened the exam and started answering the questions, looking forward to the freedom that was hers as soon as this exam was over with.

* * *

"What time is it, anyway?" Maria asked, opening her eyes half-way, as she heard a dresser drawer close. Even in her half asleep state, she new it meant that her roommate was awake and moving about the room. Deciding the light was way to bright, she pulled her pillow out from under her head and placed it over her face.

"About eight o'clock," Amber replied, not stopping what she was doing.

"And you suddenly feel the urge to start packing. My final isn't until eleven, I was hoping to sleep until at least ten," Maria replied, her voice muffled because of the pillow.

"Then go back to sleep and I'll try to be quieter," Amber told her.

It was too late. Like it or not, Maria was awake. Given up the pretense of even trying to sleep, she removed the pillow and tossed it to the side of the bed. Propping herself up on one elbow, she watched her roommate for a few minutes.

"What is the sudden urge to get everything packed up?" Maria asked, when she finally decided to speak up. The last she knew, Amber hadn't planned on leaving campus until the next day. "Did you decide to join one of your parents for the holidays after all?"

"No," Amber said, as she put a stack of t-shirts into her suitcase. "Mom and Ned are still going to enjoy their cruise in the tropics alone and I haven't talked to Dad in a week, though I may run into him during the holiday break," she informed her roommate.

"Then you decided what you're doing?"

"Yes, I have. I'm going to Vegas with Vince. He and his brother were planning to celebrate the holidays there and he invited me to tag along. Dad's current book tour takes him to Vegas, I'll just have to see what day it is."

"Vince asked you to go to Vegas with him? Is there something I should know?"

"Don't go getting any ideas," Amber told her, knowing exactly where her friend's train of thought was going. "Vince and I are just friends. It'll help him pay for his hotel room and give me something to do over the holiday break."

"You could have come home with me. Mom and Dad would have loved having you."

"Yeah, but your Aunt and Uncle are coming with their family. It's already going to be a crowd."

"All the better. No one would notice one more person," Maria said, as she swung her legs over the side of the bed, and sat on the edge.

"I think its better this way. Besides, I've never seen Las Vegas before. It'll be an experience," Amber said, placing more clothes in her suitcase.

"I've always wanted to go to Vegas. I think I'm jealous."

"We'll just have to make plans to go together after we've turned twenty-one," Amber told her.

"You know, you're right about there being a crowd at my parents' over the holidays. Think anyone would miss me if I tag along with you?"

"Somehow, I think you're Mom would at least. Besides, I thought you wanted to see your cousins."

"I do. Somehow, I think you're going to have more fun than me over the break," Maria told her. "Besides, I still think Vince had more of a motive asking you along then just the cost of the hotel room," Maria said slyly as she got to her feet. She grabbed jeans and a blouse out of her closet, walked to her dresser to retrieve her under garments and then headed for the door. She plucked her towel off the hook on the back of the door and reached for the handle. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do," she told her friend, looking back over her shoulder as she reached for the door handle.

Amber strode over to the bed and grabbed her pillow off the top bunk. She tossed it in her friend's direction as Maria disappeared out the door. As the door shut behind her, the pillow hit it and harmlessly fell to the floor.

Amber crossed over to the pillow and picked it up from the floor. She tossed it back on her bed as she went back to packing her suitcase. Maria was just teasing her. Vince was just a friend and this trip meant nothing more than two friends hanging out together.

* * *

"Ah, there's my little brother, Vince," Chad Dillaway said, as he spotted Vince walk into the lobby of the Las Vegas Hilton.

Vince and Amber had left Caltech the night before, beating the rush of students who would start leaving the campus for the holiday break. They had taken Interstate fifteen out of Los Angeles and drove up to Barstow. In Barstow, they had found a hotel near the interstate exit that had vacancy and booked a room for the night. They wouldn't be able to check into the hotel in Vegas until the afternoon so they hadn't seen a point in driving through the night.

Even sleeping in and having breakfast before the hit the road, they were still in Vegas a little after noon. Chad had called Vince around eleven thirty saying he was already in town and the two had agreed to meet at their hotel.

"Hey, Chad," Vince called out, walking toward his brother. The two hugged, as they hadn't seen each other in awhile, with Chad in law school on the east coast.

"Let me introduce you to my fiancé, Alyse," Chad said, as he broke away from his brother and held his had out to the pretty red head that was standing near him. Alyse came forward to stand by Chad's side.

"Fiancé, huh? Congratulations!" Vince said, both surprised and happy. He knew Chad had been serious about Alyse but he hadn't been expecting an engagement announcement seeing as none of the family had met her yet. "Welcome to the family," Vince said, giving his soon to be sister-in-law a hug.

"Thanks," Alyse replied.

"When did this happen?" Vince asked, looking toward his brother for an answer.

"A couple of days ago. I was going to wait until Christmas Eve but decided that I didn't want to wait, so I popped the question," Chad said, his arm around Alyse's waist. "You're the first person I've told, so no spilling the beans to anyone."

"My lips are sealed," Vince told him. Remembering Amber, he turned to look for her. She was standing near-by watching the scene with a smile on her face. "Chad, Alyse, this is my friend, Amber Rossi."

More greetings were exchanged and then Chad suggested that they go to a restaurant for lunch and kill the time they had until they could check-in to their hotel rooms. They did just that, walking down the strip to a restaurant. They took their time with lunch, getting to know one another over the meal. By the time they were ready to leave the restaurant, it was past three o'clock.

The group checked in at the desk and then took the elevator to the eleventh floor where their rooms were located. As Chad and Alyse walked into their room, Amber followed Vince into the room they were sharing.

"Do you want the bed near the window or not?" Vince asked walking into the room. He placed his bag on the waist-high dresser and turned to face her.

Amber shrugged. "It doesn't really matter," she told him.

"Take that one, then," he told her, pointing to the bed near the window.

Amber nodded and then walked over to that bed. She placed her suitcase on the bed and walked over to the window. She pushed apart the curtains and looked at the view outside. Below her the city stretched out to the horizon. It was a spectacular site even in the daylight and Amber figured it was probably even more breathtaking at night. She couldn't wait for the sun to set.

"What do you say we go exploring and unpack later?" Vince suggested, breaking through her thoughts.

"Sounds like a plan," Amber replied turning from the window. Leaving the curtains open, she and Vince left the room to go explore the Hilton.


	7. New Beginnings

AN: Updating my story seemed like a good way to start the new year so here is Chapter 7! Hope you enjoy and Happy New Year to All!

* * *

_**2007 - Kodiak Alaska:**_

Amber Rossi finished putting the last gift from her farewell party into her duffel bag. She hadn't been sure she was going to be able to make everything fit but somehow she had managed it. It had been a fun night. Her flight crew had joined the rest of her fellow house mates at the boarding house and surprised her with the party. Mrs. Franklin had gone all out with the dinner and the farewell cake she had baked. It had been late when the Coast Guard personnel had left and the rest of them had headed up to bed.

She glanced at her watch. She still had plenty of time to make it the Kodiak Airport in time to catch her Alaskan Airlines flight to Anchorage. In Anchorage, she would change flights and head down to Texas. She planned to spend three days with her mother before flying to D.C., which would still give her two days to settle in before she had to report at Station Washington. It was kind of strange concept that she wouldn't be jumping from a helicopter to rescue people for a living anymore. Doing so had become a part of who she was. A way she defined herself. She was one of the Coast Guard's elite, even more so as she was a woman. Yet, it was a relief at the same time. She wasn't sure what Station Washington held for her but she knew it would be a different adventure than what Alaska had held for her. Amber knew she would have to find a new way to define herself. There was more to her than just being a Coast Guard rescue swimmer.

Picking up her Bluetooth, she placed it in her ear and clipped her cell phone onto her belt. Amber then started going through drawers and checking her closet to make sure that she wasn't forgetting anything. This room had been home for the past few years and she was going to miss it.

She was just closing the closet door, satisfied that she wasn't forgetting anything when the cell phone rang. Reaching up, she hit the button on the Bluetooth to answer the phone.

"Hello."

"Hey Amber," came Spencer's voice through the Bluetooth. "Hope I'm not bothering you. I just wanted to touch base with you before you left up there."

"You're calls are never a bother," Amber told him, a slight smile at the nervous lilt to her friend's voice. Spencer always had worried about inconveniencing her with his phone calls. The fact that he thought of others in everything he did, was one of the things she liked about him. "I just finished packing a few last things, and making sure I'm not forgetting anything before heading for the airport."

"What time is your flight?"

"My flight to Anchorage leaves at ten," Amber told him, as she put the strap of her duffel bag over her shoulder and then picked up her two suitcases. She headed downstairs, as she continued the conversation. "I'll get a flight to Laredo International Airport in Anchorage. My mother is suppose to meet there."

"Well, you have a safe flight. Give me a call when you reach Texas, just to let me know you got there okay."

"Now you're starting to sound like my father," Amber said as she walked down the steps to the first floor of the boarding house.

"Sorry," Spencer said, apologetically. "You don't have to call if you don't want . . ."

"Relax. It's sweet. Besides, it'll give me an excuse to call you," Amber told him cutting his apology off.

Mrs. Franklin was waiting for her near the front door. As Amber reached the first floor, the older woman opened the door for her.

"I'll be back in to say good-bye," Amber told her land lady as she walked out the door with her bags.

"What was that?" Spencer asked, as Mrs. Franklin nodded her ascent.

"Sorry, I was just telling my landlady I'd be back in to tell her good-bye. I'm heading out to my truck with my bags. Or well, should I say Macy's truck as the title is actually in her name now," Amber replied.

Instead of trying to ship the truck out to the east coast, Amber had decided that buying a new vehicle once she got to the D.C. area would be much more practical. She had decided to sell the truck cheaply to Macy, who didn't have a vehicle. Amber would drive to the airport with it and leave it there. Conrad and Finney had agreed to bring it back to the boarding house when they left the base that evening.

"Oh, okay," Spencer said. There was a pause in the conversation. Amber had reached the vehicle by the time Spencer spoke again. "Hey Amber, have you ever mentioned me to your father? I mean would he know we once dated? I mean I didn't even really make the connection of who your father was until after you told me about the transfer so I was just wondering if you knew if he knew who I was or what?"

"Has my father been giving you a hard time?" Amber asked, even as she smiled at Spencer's roundabout way of asking such a simple question.

"No not really. It just seems like he tolerates me being around because he has too, sometimes, though I guess I have that effect on a lot of people. I guess I was just wondering if that reacion was really just me or because you and I, well that we once went out."

"Well, I told my father about you back when we were dating, Spencer. I think I even sent him a few pictures with you in them. Now, whether he's actually made the connection himself, I couldn't tell you but I know I haven't come right out and told him recently. Guess I didn't want to jinx any chance we might have," Amber told him as she put her bags into the vehicle.

"Chance we might have? Then you do want to give our relationship another shot?"

"Well, yes. I mean if that's what you want, too. You haven't ever mentioned to me that you were dating anyone so I guess I kind of just assumed I didn't have any competition. Do I?"

"Do you have any competition? No. I haven't exactly been out on many dates since you and I broke up and even then I'm not sure you would really call the one time I went out with a co-worker a date."

"Good. I don't care for competition," Amber told him. "Look, I hate to do this but I'm going to have to end this conversation. I need to say good-be to Mrs. Franklin and head for the airport. I'll call you tonight when I'm in Texas okay."

"Okay. I should probably get off the phone myself. I'll talk to you later. Have a safe-flight."

"Thanks," Amber said, before reaching up to disconnect the call as she walked back toward the boarding house.

It was the first time she had talked about getting back together with Spencer out loud, though she had acknowledged to herself that she was hoping it would happen. That was, after all, why she had called him upon finding out about the transfer. Why she had sent the text message to Spencer before she had called either one of her parents.

She hadn't factored in the fact that Spencer was now working with her father. Would that effect their chances? Had her father made the connection like Spencer had? What did he think of the younger profiler? Would the fact that Spencer was dating his 'little girl' color her father's opinion of the younger agent? Would it cause problems for the two of them at work?

These were all questions that she hadn't considered before this. Questions which she didn't have the answers for but whose answers might just affect any chances that she and Spencer had. Perhaps she needed to have a conversation with her father on the subject, though as Amber reentered the boarding house, she decided that was one conversation she would prefer to have face-to-face with him rather than over the phone.

_**2007 - En route to Bridgewater, Florida - Time frame during the episode "Lucky":**_

SSA Dr. Spencer Reid stared out the window of the jet as it continued its flight to Bridgewater, Florida. He had moved to the end of the bench seat in the jet, trying to distant himself as much as he could from everybody else. The team had finished their on flight briefing of the case and decided on a course of action once they landed. Most of his other teammates were still going over case materials - flipping through their copy of the file and looking at the few photos that they had. It was something that Reid didn't need to do anymore of. He already knew everything that was in those files. Could recite it to anyone who asked if need be.

Sometimes his eidetic memory was a blessing. Saved him time because he didn't have to review things that other people did. Other times it was curse. When he couldn't forget things that had happened. Horrors that were burned into his mind. A curse when he needed something to occupy his mind but there wasn't anything to do because he already knew it. This was one of those times.

So, instead of going over the case files, his mind was replaying the team briefing. It that replay had been limited to the information relative to the case, that would have been fine. However, more had happened than just that. He recalled the look that Agent Rossi had given him when he commented about Reid reciting his book word for word. A look that the older agent had continued to give him, as Morgan had cut Reid off from relaying more information from the book. It was a look that had made Reid very uncomfortable. One thing he knew for sure, he definitely wasn't winning any points with Amber's father today.

It wasn't only Rossi today either. Reid felt like he was alienating everyone today. Morgan's words about not telling him what he believed still echoed in his mind. He hadn't meant to upset his friend with his remarks and though he wanted to apologize, he wasn't about to do so with Prentiss sitting right next to Morgan. An apology would have to wait.

Trying to forget his friend's angry words directed toward him, Reid tried to think of something other than Morgan and his thoughts fell back to Rossi.

"_Abandon hope all ye who enter here."_

Were those words only intended to be in a response to JJ's question or was there something more. Rossi had glanced at all of them as he left the conference room, however, Reid felt like his gaze had hung on him just a second longer than the rest of him. Had it, or was he just imagining things? Had Agent Rossi been giving him a hidden also been sending him a message? Telling him that he knew about Reid and Amber and that Reid didn't stand a chance. That he wouldn't tolerate them being together.

Or was he just being paranoid. Making the situation worse than it really was. Amber had said she had told Rossi about them when they were dating. That didn't mean Agent Rossi had made any connections. He hadn't himself until he had saw Amber's picture in his office. Besides, he and Amber weren't really a couple anymore. Why worry about any of this right now? The best thing would be to just wait and see what happened when Amber got into town. Then, if he and Amber did get back together, well, he could cross that bridge when he came to it.

"Is the scenery really that interesting?"

Reid jumped at the sound of Agent Rossi's voice and he felt his heart skip a beat. Looking away from the window, he saw that Rossi had moved from his previous seat and was sitting at the other end of the bench seat. Reid glanced around the jet to see that the rest of his team still looked absorbed in their own activities and were paying no mind to the to of them.

"Um, no not really," Reid asked, glancing briefly at Agent Rossi, and then back out the window. Feeling self-conscious about that given Rossi's previous comment, Reid averted his gaze to the closed file sitting on the seat in between them.

"So just how were you able to quote my book word for word?" Rossi asked, wanting to satisfy his own curiosity about the youngest agent on this team he had joined. He had seen the kid in action on the last several cases and he still wasn't quite sure what made him tick.

"Um, I have an eidetic memory. I read something and I instantly remember it. It's almost like I can just see it again in my mind when I try to recall it," Reid replied. "I didn't mean to steal any of your thunder or anything. I tend to get overzealous when it comes to restating information. I sometimes forget that other people aren't quite as interested in things like that as I am."

"That's right. Amber commented one time that hanging around you was like having her own personal tour guide," Rossi commented, watching Spencer for his reaction.

The tour guide reminder would have made Spencer smiled under any other circumstances. However, the fact that it came from Agent Rossi made that impossible. Reid knew what that meant.

"You know then?" Reid asked, his voice barely above a whisper, though he really didn't need the answer.

"That you dated my daughter at one time?" Rossi asked. Spencer barely managed a nod. "I didn't make the connection the first time I met you. I reckon that I made the connection just after you did. When you asked who the picture was of in my office, it got me thinking. Not having your eidetic memory, I had to look back at some things but I was able to satisfy my curiosity."

"So I guess this is where you tell me to stay away from your daughter."

Rossi raised his eyebrow as he looked at his co-worker. "Even if I wanted to do that, I believe Amber would have something to say about that. She's got quite an independent streak. Her mother blames that one me," he added, with a slight shrug of his shoulders. "Besides, I'm not naive enough to think that she won't date someone just because I don't want her too and if she even suspected that I had anything to do with the guy suddenly running off in the opposite direction, she'd have a few things to say about that," he said. "Besides, what I want is for my daughter to be happy. The happiest I ever remember seeing her was while she was dating you."

"So what are you saying?"

"I'm saying that whatever the two of you decide, I don't plan on getting in the way," Rossi told him. "Of course if you hurt her, then I probably will have something to say about that," he added, before getting to his feet.

Reid watched as Rossi made his way back to the front of the jet and sat in a seat opposite of Hotch. The young genius was suddenly very glad that when they landed he would not be in the same group as Rossi. Keeping some distance between them for a little while would probably be the best course of action he could take right now.

_**During the episode "Lucky" - before Tracy Lambert is abducted:**_

Hotch had sent them all to the hotel to grab a couple hours of sleep after the whole team had met back at police station and compared notes. The news about the fingers had been disturbing but it had also told them something. Abbey Kelton wasn't the UnSub's first victim and the fact that there were six index fingers meant that there was at least three more victims. They were definitely dealing with a serial killer here in Bridgewater.

As soon as he walked into his hotel room though, Reid knew he wasn't going to be able to sleep. He doubted his teammates would get much sleep either. They had a missing woman out there that was running out of time. Even as Reid tried going over the facts of the case in his mind though, he mind kept going back to something else. Back to Morgan's comment from the plane.

Reid hadn't found a time to talk to the other agent alone over the course of the day, at least not alone. Taking the chance that Morgan wouldn't have yet fallen asleep, Reid left his own room and walked down the hall the short distance to Morgan's. He knocked on the door and waited.

Reid waited a bit and when there was no answer knocked again. He listened, but heard nothing from inside the room. Deciding the other agent must have already fallen asleep, Reid turned and headed back toward his own room. He had only taken a couple of steps when a voice stopped him.

"Hey, Kid. Were you looking for me?"

Reid turned to see Morgan coming down the hallway from the opposite direction. Reid watched Morgan twist the cap of the soda he was carrying open, and figured Morgan had gone in search of a vending machine.

"Yeah, I wanted to talk to you," Reid said nervously, wondering if his friend was still upset with him from his earlier comment.

"Okay," Morgan said, picking up on his friend's nervous tone and wondering about it. He had a feeling this wasn't a conversation that would be appropriate for the hallway. "Come on in," Morgan told him, reaching the door and inserting the key card.

Reid followed Morgan into the room. The dark-skinned agent tossed the key card on the desk as he headed toward the small table by the window of the room. As he took a swig of the soda he was carrying, he sat down in one of the chairs.

"What's on your mind?" Morgan asked, looking at Reid, who still stood, having only come into the room about half-way.

"About earlier, on the plane, I'm sorry if what I said offended you. I didn't mean anything by it and I would never try to tell anyone what they should believe."

"It's cool, man. I guess I'm just a little sensitive when it comes to religion," Morgan told him. "I shouldn't have snapped at you like I did though."

Reid nodded, relieved that Morgan wasn't still mad at him.

"Is Rossi given you a hard time?" Morgan asked, as he thought about his own issues today with the legendary profiler. Still, he could deal with Rossi. Morgan knew the older gentleman was challenging him on purpose and he wasn't about to let him get to him. However, Rossi given him a hard time was one thing, but if their new teammate was giving Reid a hard time, Morgan wasn't about to let it go without sticking up with his friend.

"What?" Reid asked, surprised by the question.

"I saw him talking to you on the plane. Is he giving you a hard time? I'll talk to him if he is."

"No. It's fine. We were just talking," Reid told him, with a wave of dismissal.

Morgan didn't need to be a profiler to tell it wasn't as simple as that. That there was something that Reid still wasn't telling him. Not to mention the phone call earlier that day that he had been so secretive about. Instead of pressing the issue though, Morgan just nodded. Now wasn't the time to stir things up. They should both really try to get some sleep. Morning would come quick and they had an UnSub out their somewhere that they had to find.

_**Following the team's return from Bridgewater FL:**_

Reid walked into his apartment, and reached out to flip on the switch. The apartment was suddenly cast in light. There was something comforting about coming home to the familiar surroundings, especially after a case like this last one.

Stepping inside, Reid dropped his go-bag on the floor, and closed the apartment door behind him. He checked the lock and then slid the dead bolt into place. He walked into the kitchen and grabbed a glass, which he placed on the counter. Going to the refrigerator, he grabbed the jug of water there, his eyes falling on the unopened package of sliced ham. He suddenly felt nauseous. After this last case, he had a feeling he wouldn't look at meat the same way for awhile. A vegetarian diet might be the best way to go.

Reid poured the water into the glass and returned the jug to the refrigerator. He took a couple of swallows of the cold liquid before leaving the kitchen area. Walking over to the couch, he sat down, placing the glass on a coaster on the coffee table. Leaning back on the couch, he let his head rest of the back of it and closed his eyes. There were plenty of things he should probably try to get done before retiring that night but right now, he didn't have any desire to move.

At the sound of his cell phone ringing, Reid let out a groan. It was the last thing he wanted to hear. He just wanted one night to himself. One night to be able to relax as well as he could, after the long hours they had put in during this last case. Reid wanted just to ignore the ringing phone. Despite what he wanted to do, Reid reached for his cell phone. Not moving his head from where it was, he opened his eyes, and holding the phone up glanced at the screen. He felt a measure of relief to see that it wasn't any of his teammates calling.

"Hey. What's up?" Reid said, answering the call and putting the phone to his ear.

"Not much. Just trying to drown out the argument going on downstairs between Mom and the latest guy she's dating. Even the ear muffs I brought from Alaska aren't helping," Amber replied. "Are you still on that case?" Amber asked, knowing that if he was this might be a short call.

When she had landed in Texas the other night, she had called her Dad first. Getting his voice mail, she had left a message and then called Spencer. Though Spencer had answered, the conversation had been kept short due to what had been going on in his current case.

"No, we caught the guy. I just got home a little while ago, actually."

"You sound tired. Was this a bad time to call?"

"No, I'm glad you called. It's nice to hear your voice. I need to hear something cheerful after a case like this last one."

It wasn't the most romantic thing that a guy had ever told her. Being told that your voice was cheerful was nice but more a comment a friend might make. Of course, all she and Spencer were right now were friends. They had been more to one another once. Even then, Spencer had never been any good a whispering the sweet words that most guys said, trying to make the woman feel good. Trying to get the one thing they wanted. He had never been that way. Amber figured he never would, not that it really mattered to her. While his compliments might not be Hollywood caliber, but they were always genuine. Somehow, Amber thought that meant more.

"Well, then what would you like to hear about and please, don't say Texas. I'm starting to regret paying my mother a visit," Amber told him, as a few words from the argument downstairs became audible in her old bedroom. They were words that Amber would never think of repeating even in the most frustrating of times.

"I'm sure it can't be that bad. It's just a bad night."

"You're right, it wouldn't be all that bad, if she would dump the current guy she is with. I seriously don't know what she can see in him. Hold up, I thought I said I didn't want to talk about what's going on here."

"You did. I'm sorry," Spencer told her. Amber's mother's constantly revolving men in her life had always been a sore spot with her. It wasn't that she hated everyone her mother dated. There had been a few that Amber had liked, even a couple of her step fathers. However, the bad experiences had over shadowed the good. Especially with her mother's third husband. "How about we talk about your father instead?" Spencer said, hesitantly, the conversation with Agent Rosi on the plane down to Florida coming back to mind.

Between the case keeping them busy and the others being around, nothing else had been said between the two of them since the initial conversation. In some ways, Reid had been relieved. At other times, he felt as though things had been left in an awkward place for them. Reid wasn't sure what to do about it though. Did he try to be friends with Agent Rossi or just let things go for now?

"What about my father?" Amber asked, wondering where her friend was trying to steer the conversation to. She recalled Spencer asking if she knew whether her father knew about the fact that they use to date during their conversation before she had left Alaska. He had seemed nervous then. Was that the direction he was taking the conversation in now or had something else taken place? Though she had spoken briefly with her father, as he had called her back upon getting the voice mail she had left for him, Spencer had not come up in the conversation.

"He's made the connection."

"You know this for sure?"

Reid found himself nodding before realizing that she wouldn't be able to see the gesture. "He told me. I'm not exactly sure how to take the comments he made to me either. He sort of sounded okay with the whole idea, but then sort of ended the conversation with a veiled threat," Spencer finally told her. He was surprised to hear Amber's laugh on the other end of the phone. "I don't see what is so funny about this situation."

"What I find funny is that you're sounding like a teenager who is about to meet his girlfriend's father for the very first time. All we need is the proverbial shot-gun."

"Not a very comforting analogy. Your father does carry a gun."

"Two guns, actually," Amber commented off-handedly, thinking of the concealed back-up piece that he carried in an ankle holster.

"That doesn't help any," Reid told her.

"My father isn't going to shoot you," Amber told him. "He's always been very polite to all of my friends as well as the other guys I have dated."

"Then how come you never actually introduced me to your father when we were dating?" Reid asked, finally asking the question he had been wanting to ask for awhile. He had met Amber's mother as well as her step-father at the time when they were dating but never her biological father.

"It just never come up. It wasn't like I spent a lot of time with my father during that time. Not to mention you never expressed a direct desire to meet him back then. If you had asked, I would have found a way to introduce you. Unlike with your mother. I don't think you would have chosen to introduce me to her if you had your way."

"That was a completely different situation. Things with my mother weren't exactly stable when we first met," Reid said in his defense. "I did finally introduce you. Which reminds me, I wrote to her and told her you were coming out to D.C.," Reid told her, smiling to himself as he thought of what his mother had written to him in response to that information. "She told me not to let you get away this time."

"I always knew she had good taste," Amber responded. "Back to the subject of my father, I think you're overreacting. If it'll make you feel better, we can plan some time for the three of us to spend some time together. You'll find that despite the rough edges and growl, my Dad is really of softie at heart."

"Somehow, that description just doesn't fit the Agent Rossi that I've been exposed to," Reid informed her. He was about to say something more when a beep sounded in his ear indicating that he had another call. "Amber, I'm gonna put you on hold for a moment. I've got someone else calling."

"Okay," Amber replied. "I don't exactly have any plans."

"I'll get right back to you," Reid promised before putting the call on hold and answering the incoming call, which was from JJ. "JJ, what's going on? Please don't tell me we've got another case."

"I almost wish I was calling with another case, Spence," JJ told him. By the tone in her voice he immediately knew that something bad had happened. "Garcia was shot. She was taken to the hospital by the paramedics. That's all I really know right now."

Spencer felt the lighter mood that talking to Amber had brought to him disappear like a flash of lightening. He didn't want to believe that he had heard JJ right. That anyone would want to shoot someone like Garcia.


	8. Personal Tour Guide

_**Las Vegas, Nevada - December 1999:**_

Amber had looked up on her father's book tour schedule online. Former FBI agent and now author, David Rossi, was scheduled to be at a Las Vegas bookstore to promote his new book on Amber's third day there. Instead of calling him before hand, Amber decided she would just drop in and surprise him. Leaving Vince with Chad and Alyse, Amber set off on her own to the book store.

She had decided to drop in at the ending of the session. As she walked through the mall toward the bookstore, she was surprised when she saw her Chemistry TA from the previous semester, Spencer Reid, walking in her direction, plastic shopping bag dangling from one hand.

"Spencer," Amber called out, trying to get his attention as he hadn't seen her.

Hearing his name, Spencer stopped and glanced around the mall. When he looked her direction Amber waved as she made her way in his direction. Spencer smiled when he recognized her.

"You're the last person I expected to see here," Spencer commented, as she walked up to him.

"I'm came to Vegas with a friend for the holiday break. Never been here before and I figured it beat my other options for the break. What are you doing here?"

"I'm from Vegas. Came home to spend the holiday break with my mother."

"Really. I didn't realize you were from here. Must have been exciting growing up around here."

Spencer shrugged. "It definitely prepared me for going other places. Not much surprises me because you see just about everything in this city," he told her. "Are you alone right now?" Spencer asked.

"Yeah. I'm going to catch up with my father whose in the city on business. Perhaps you and I could get together while I'm here. You can show me around," Amber suggested, not sure why that now that she knew Spencer was in the city it was so important to her that she see him. She hadn't thought about him at all since she had left campus.

"Yeah, sure. That sounds like a good plan. Um, why don't you give me a call later this evening when you have some free time," Spencer replied.

"I'll do that," Amber replied.

Spencer nodded. "Okay, then. I guess I'll talk to you later then," he told her, and started to continue in the direction he had been going before Amber had spotted him.

"Spencer wait," Amber said, reaching out and grabbing his arm. "I need your number so I can call you," she told him, a small amused smile coming to her lips.

"Ah, yeah, I guess that would help," he replied, slightly embarrassed but hoping she didn't notice.

Amber got her phone out, and saved the number Spencer gave her in her contacts list. The two said good-bye and as Spencer walked away, Amber continued to the store. As soon as she walked into the bookstore, Amber spotted her father.

Former FBI agent David Rossi was in one corner of the bookstore, still signing and answering the questions of a few of his fans. He finished signing a book he was holding and then flipped the cover closed. Looking up from the book, he spotted Amber walking toward him as he handed the book back to its owner.

"Thanks," the guy said, with a huge smile as he took the book back. The fan turned and headed out of the store, flipping open the cover of the book to look at the autograph he had just gotten, only half paying attention to where he was walking.

As quickly and politely as he could, David Rossi signed the few remaining books for those still in line and excused himself from his fans. His obligations done, he turned to his daughter.

"Amber, honey, what are you doing here? I thought you were spending the holidays with your mother?" Rossi said, acknowledging his daughter, both surprised and pleased to see her.

"There was a change in plans. Mom decided to go on a cruise over Christmas and somehow I couldn't picture myself celebrating Christmas on a cruise ship," Amber replied, coming up with a quick plausible excuse. Somehow, she didn't feel comfortable telling her Dad her true feelings about her stepfather. She had often felt like she was stuck in the middle of her parents growing up and had no desire to place herself there again.

"You should have called me about your change of plans. I could have postponed this tour and you could have come stayed with me."

"I didn't want you to have to drop everything just for me. Besides, a friend of mine invited me to tag along for a trip to Vegas, so here I am. I figured I'd stop by and surprise you."

"Well, you certainly did that," Rossi told her. "Is your friend with you?"

Amber shook her head. "Vince is hanging out with his brother and his brother's fiancé this afternoon. I was hoping we might be able to spend some time together actually. If you don't have to be somewhere else that is."

"I was actually just planning on heading back to the hotel and relaxing tonight as I don't have a flight down to Flagstaff until the morning. I can't think of a better way of relaxing then spending time with my daughter. Are you hungry?" Rossi asked. Amber nodded. "Then what do you say we go find us a restaurant. My treat," he told her, offering his arm to her.

"Sounds like a plan," Amber told him, smiling. She hooked her arm through her father's offered arm and the two left the bookstore together.

"So, is this Vince guy anyone that I need to worry about?" Rossi asked, as he and his daughter walked through the mall to the entrance closest to where Amber had parked her truck. Rossi hadn't even bothered with a rental car while in Las Vegas seeing as the mass transit system served him well enough for the short time he was in the city. "I want to make sure that any guy dating my daughter is good enough for her."

"We're just friends," Amber told him, not sure what bothered her more. The fact that her Dad had gone into protective father mode all of the sudden or that he had jumped to the same conclusion that Maria had. Why did everyone assume that just because you were friends with a guy that there was more to it than just friendship?

"I guess I won't have to give him the third degree if I ever meet him then," Rossi told her as they walked through the door to the mall.

"Maybe we can catch up with Vince later this evening," Amber said as they approached the entrance to the mall. Other than Maria and Mark, who she had grown up with, her father meant hadn't met any of her group of friends that she went to college with. It wasn't that she didn't want him to meet her father, however, the opportunity just hadn't arose during her first semester.

"Perhaps we can," Rossi agreed, pleased that his daughter wanted him to meet her friends. Even though she was nineteen, like any good parent, he worried about her. Wanted to know the type of people she was hanging out with, especially after everything he had seen on his job. As much as he wanted to spend time with his daughter alone, he also didn't want to miss the opportunity to meet one of her friends.

"I'll give him call and see what he is doing later this evening. So how is your current book tour going?"

"Very well actually. So far I'm getting better attendance to these book readings than I have on my previous books. It still amazes me sometimes how much people are into the things I write about."

"Do you ever regret going into early retirement to write?" Amber asked.

"I'd be lying if I said no," Rossi admitted, thinking about the one unsolved case that still haunted him. This was the time of year that the case and the children that had been left orphaned by what had happened, was the most vivid. "When I think of everything I was able to see in my daughter's life because I walked away from the job though, it makes it worth it. I missed so much of your life while you were growing up, that I'm grateful for the things I've been able to share with you these last few years."

"I've enjoyed you being around more too," Amber told him sincerely as she gave the arm she was clinging to a squeeze.

Father and daughter fell silent as they continued to walk through the parking lot. Reaching the truck, Rossi climbed in the passenger seat as his daughter climbed behind the wheel.

* * *

"Your Dad seems pretty cool, especially as he use to work for the FBI. Guess I always saw the FBI type as stuck up, suit and tie, with no sense of humor," Vince commented as he pushed the door to their hotel room open.

The whole group had just got back from the Hard Rock Café where they had enjoyed dinner with Amber's father. David Rossi had even paid for everyone's meals, which the vacationing college students had appreciated. Though the Dillaway brother's and Alyse had been a bit nervous about having dinner with Amber's father, and the beginning of the evening had been a little tense, David Rossi had managed to cut through that tension. He had asked questions of everyone, trying to include them all in the conversation. His easy, charismatic personality had soon put everyone at ease. Chad had started asking Mr. Rossi questions about his work with the FBI, which the retired agent had happily answered. As a result, it was now almost ten o'clock as they returned to their rooms.

"Yeah, he can be," Amber agreed. "He can also be very demanding and strict," she told him coming into the room. She placed her purse on the desk and then placed the gift wrapped box her father had given her in the top drawer of her dresser. It was a Christmas gift and she intended to wait until Christmas to open it.

"Yeah, that last part sounds like my Dad but he doesn't have the cool thing going on," Vince told her, as he flopped down on his bed.

"Do you think it would be too late to call, Spencer?" Amber asked as she looked at the digital clock on the night stand between the beds with concern. She had intended on stepping outside at the restaurant and giving him a call but once she had gotten there that plan had slipped her mind.

"I still can't believe that you're in one of the coolest cities in the country with one of the coolest guys," Vince told her, gesturing to himself as he said the words, "and you want to call that geeky waiter."

Amber picked up a rolled up pair of clean socks out of the top drawer of the dresser that was still opened and tossed them at Vince. "Be nice," she scolded.

Vince reached up and caught the sock ball before it hit him. "It is Vegas," Vince said with a smile as he tossed the socks back to Amber. "I think you'll be okay if you call now," he told her.

Amber nodded, and taking her cell phone out of her purse headed for the sliding glass door. Stepping out onto the balcony she opened her contacts list, and scrolled through until she found Spencer's name. With his number highlighted, she pressed the button with the green phone on the keypad and put the phone to her ear.

"Hello," Spencer said, answering the call on the second ring.

"Hey Spencer, its Amber. Sorry to be calling so late," she said, apologizing. Spencer's voice sounded tired on the other end of the phone. She was starting to wonder if not waiting for the next day would have been the better choice.

"It's not a problem. I was starting to think you had forgotten about me altogether."

"Of course not! I just got busy. My Dad ended up taking the group I'm here in Vegas with out for dinner and the time got away from me. I just got back to the hotel."

"Sounds like you're enjoying yourself, then."

"It's been fun. Coming here is definitely turning out to be a lot more fun than the other options that I had opened to me," Amber told him. She heard a crash in the background. Before she could say anything though, Spencer was talking.

"Amber ah, can I call you back in a little bit? I got to go deal with something. Or if you weren't planning on staying up, I'll call you tomorrow."

"I'll be up for awhile. Just call me back when you can," Amber said, wanting to ask what was going on but not wanting to seem like she was prying.

"Okay. I'll give you a call as soon as I can," Spencer told her and then ended the call before she had a chance to say anything. Turning, she headed back into the hotel room.

"That was a short call. Did you not get a hold of him?" Vince asked as he continued flipping through the channels on the tv.

"I got a hold of him. He said he'll call me back in a little bit. Sounded like something was going on at his place."

"Maybe the guy is cooler than I thought," Vince said, with a wink. "Chad called while you were out there. Wanted to let us know that he and Alyse plan on hitting the casinos tomorrow so we're on our own. It's short notice but maybe your pal could join us tomorrow, that is unless you wanted to spend time with him alone," Vince said, his voice taking on a suggestive tone as he said the last words.

"I'll see what he's up to when he calls back," Amber told him, ignoring the last jab. "I'm gonna go take a shower. If my phone ring, will you answer it for me please?" she told him, tossing the phone down on his bed within arm reach.

"You sure you trust me?" Vince asked.

"Only because I don't have anyone else to ask," Amber told him, grabbing her pajamas and heading for the bathroom.

"Ouch, that hurts," Vince told her, dropping the remote, and putting his hands over his heart.

As Amber went into the bathroom, Vince retrieved the remote and went back to flipping through the channels. By the time she had finished with her shower, he had found a decent movie to watch and had changed into the t-shirt and shorts he had been sleeping in while in Vegas.

Amber settled onto her own bed, and reached out to take her phone from Vince as he handed it to her.

"No calls yet," he told her.

As if on cue, the phone rang. Amber looked at the screen and saw Spencer's name there.

"Hey. Everything okay?" she asked, settling back against the pillows.

* * *

Vince was behind the wheel of his car, as they followed the directions Spencer Reid had given them to his house. The Las Vegas native had said he didn't have any plans for the day, and had been happy to show them the areas of his home city that were away from the heavily tourist visited area known as the Strip. He had consented to having them pick him up at his home, and had given Amber turn by turn directions.

"Turn left at the next light," Amber told Vince. "We'll be on his street then. He said it was the eighth house on the right."

"Got it," Vince commented, as he approached the turning lane. Flipping on his turn signal, he changed lanes and applied the break as the light was green. "So did he say where he was going to take us?" Vince asked, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel as he waited for the light to change.

"He gave me several options. I thought the desert botanical gardens sounded interesting. It'll be neat to see some of the natural habitat of the region," Amber replied. "I'm sure we'll have time to do something else this afternoon, but I figured we could cross that bridge when we come to it."

Vince nodded, moving his foot from the break to the gas as the red light changed to a green arrow. As he turned onto the indicated street, he started counting houses. It wasn't necessary as he could easily tell which house Spence lived in, as he spotted him sitting on the front steps of the house.

He pulled into the driveway, and Spencer immediately started approaching the vehicle, not even giving Amber or Vince a chance to get out of the car. Vince unlocked the doors as Spencer reached the back passenger door. Opening it, he climbed in and the three exchanged greetings. It wasn't long before they were back on the road. Vince was now taking directions from Spencer who was telling him how to reach the Desert Demonstration Gardens.

Reaching the gardens located on West Alta Drive, Vince found a place to park. The three of them got out of the vehicle and headed toward the entrance.

"The Desert Demonstration Gardens opened at this site back in 1990," Spencer told them as the walked. "It was reopened back then after some renovations. The gardens operated under the old name of the Kiwanis Water Conservation Park from the time it was opened in 1982 until 1986 when the Las Vegas Valley Water district developed a master plan for the park. The gardens contain species of desert compatible plants that are native to this area as well as teaching the importance of water conservation in the area."

"I thought I was on vacation," Vince whispered to Amber, who was walking in between Spencer and Vince. Amber nudged her friend with her elbow but didn't comment as she continued to listen to what Spencer was saying.

The three young adults were soon within the botanical gardens. Amber thought the desert plants were beautiful and she found the different gardens beautiful. She had always thought of the desert as barren. She was starting to see how wrong the perception was and just how many plant species had adapted to survive in the harsh conditions of a desert.

Spencer seemed to know something about every species of plant that they passed, able to tell them about it without anyone needed to read the information that was provided. Though Vince made a couple of humorous comments, one about wondering whether he had a degree in horticulture too, about Spencer, Amber could still tell he was enjoying himself. Amber wasn't sure if Spencer heard Vince's comments or not, but if he did he pretended not to.

It was around lunch time when the three of them left The Desert Demonstration Gardens and headed back for Vince's car. They got in, Amber sitting in the back of the vehicle this time, and with Spencer giving directions headed for a little café, out of the way of most of the normal tourist traffic.

The Desert Rose Café, was a privately owned café in was located in downtown Las Vegas only a few blocks from Las Vegas City Hall. It was mostly frequented by locals, especially during the afternoon hours of the weekdays, as many of the business people and city workers found their way for lunch or business meetings. The evening hours found families and high school students finding their way to the café. It was during the evening hours that the piano that sat on the one side of the café got the most use, either by patrons who played, or local musicians that the Henderson's hired to entertain.

As Vince, Amber and Spencer walked into the café just past noon, the place was about half full. Soft rock music played from the speakers as a soft murmur of conversations permeated the environment. Most of the café's occupants were dressed in business casual attire, a few of the men in suits. There were a few groups of women sprinkled throughout.

"I'm feeling a bit underdressed," Vince commented as they stopped by the sign that read please wait to be seated.

"The Desert Rose doesn't have any dress code," Spencer responded, as a woman who was in her late forties and wearing black slacks and a red blouse covered by a white apron approached them.

"Spencer! It's good to see you! I've been meaning to stop by and see you but I've been busy with holiday preparations this past week after I leave here."

"It's okay, Mrs. Henderson," Spencer responded as the woman gave him a hug, which he returned awkwardly, self-conscious about the other people in the café.

"How's Diana been doing?" Mrs. Henderson asked.

"About the same as she had been," Spencer said, not wanting to discuss his mother right then, afraid that either Amber or Vince would start asking questions. "Mrs. Henderson, these are two fellow students from Caltech. They're visiting the city for the holidays and I've been showing them around today."

"Ah, welcome, welcome," Mrs. Henderson said, smiling at the other two young adults as she shook hands with him. "Spencer has brought you to one of Las Vegas' best kept secrets," she told them as she grabbed three menus from the nearby stands. "Though, as I own the place I might be a bit bias," the woman informed them with a wink. "Follow me please," she told them as she turned and started walking toward the back of the café.

Mrs. Henderson led them to a booth in the back corner of the café away from the other patrons. The cafe's owner informed them of the specials of the day as they walked. Reaching the table, she placed the three menus on the table as Vince slid into the booth on one side and Amber and Spencer took seats opposite of him.

"Alicia will be with you shortly," Mrs. Henderson told them. "Can I get you some drinks?" she asked.

"I'll take the Desert Rose Fizz," Spencer told her without needing to look at the menu.

"A coke," Vince replied, shortly after while Amber was scanning the list of beverages on the menu.

"I'll take a Desert Rose Fizz too," Amber said a little while later, after having looked at what the drink was made up of.

"Great choice," Mrs. Henderson told her.

"So you got any recommendations?" Amber asked, glancing over at Spencer as he looked at his menu.

"All the food is really good. Mrs. Henderson's son, Edward, is the main cook here. He took over three years ago after going to culinary school. If you're feeling adventurous, I'd suggest one of his signature dishes, they're the ones that have a rose next to the name," Spencer responded.

"Think I'll stick to something more traditional," Vince commented. "Good ole American Burger and Fries."

"You know, though most do admit that America had a major influence in the evolution of the hamburger in its current form of a beef patty in a bun, the actual origins of the hamburger can be said to be traced back to medieval times. A band of Mongolian and Turkish warriors who were known as Tartars, are thought to be the originators of the first beef patty. They would place pieces of beef under their saddles and the weight of the rider and the saddle would eventually make the meat tender enough to eat raw."

"Well, no matter how the Tartars liked to eat their beef patties, I tend to order mine well done," Vince commented, wondering silently exactly how the guy had known about that.

"I think I might just be a bit adventurous," Amber commented, checking out the selections which had the little rose after the name. She wasn't much of a cook, but even she could managed to cook a decent burger whether it be in a pan or on a grill.

Their waitress appeared before too long and cheerfully introduced herself. She was a pretty blonde, probably about their age, and seemed to be smiling even more when she looked at Vince. Sitting across the table from Vince, Amber could tell that the attraction wasn't just on the side of the waitress. Amber and Spencer gave Alicia their orders. Instead of ordering the hamburger he had said he was going to get, Vince decided to do a little bit of flirting.

"I'm having a bit of trouble trying to decide what to order. You seem like you have good taste," Vince said, smiling up at the waitress. "What would you suggest?"

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Spencer open his mouth. Looking over at him, she shook her head. Though the look he gave her showed confusion, Spencer did stay quiet.

Alicia took a step toward Vince, to stand next to him, under the pretense of looking at his menu over his shoulder. She made a couple of suggestions. Amber didn't miss the "accidental" brush of Vince's arm as Alicia brought her hand back away from the menu. Vince picked one of her suggestions and then Alicia was leaving the table, to put their orders in.

Amber smiled. Well she was now sure of one thing, like she had told Maria before she had left California, Vince wasn't interested in her any other way other than as friends. The fact that he was openly flirting with another girl in front of her told her that much.

"Still feeling out of place?" Amber asked slyly.

"I never said I felt out of place, I said I felt underdressed. There is a difference," Vince responded.

"The way the waitress was looking at you, I think she might think you're overdressed," Amber commented, smiling.

"So Spencer, does the owner know you because you're in here all the time or do you know about this place because of her?" Vince asked, deliberately choosing to ignore Amber's comment.

"Mrs. Henderson is an old high school friend of my mothers," Spencer told him. "Our families are close and I feel better being away knowing that they're around to keep an eye on things so my mother isn't alone."

"No siblings then?" Vince asked, to which Spencer shook his head. "That's probably a good thing. Trying to live up to an older sibling can be tough even when that older sibling isn't a br . . . genius," Vince said, changing the wording to make it sound less like he was making fun of him.

"There are times I wish I did have an older brother or sister, even if they did show me up. It gets lonely as an only child. Especially when your parents don't exactly stay together," Amber commented.

Knowing how sullen his friend could get when she started talking about her parents, Vince decided to change the topic before that happened. Not to mention it appeared to him that Spencer wasn't too comfortable talking about his family life either.

By the time Alicia came back to check on them, the group was discussing what they were going to do with the rest of the afternoon. Though Vince was paying attention to what Spencer was saying, he still didn't miss an opportunity to flirt with their waitress. By the time their meals arrived, they had decided where to go afterwards and talk had turned to other things, with Vince and Amber carrying the bulk of the conversation.

By the time they were walking out of the Desert Rose Café, Vince had managed to get Alicia's phone number.


	9. Holding Onto A Dream

_**2007 - Washington D.C. Area:**_

Amber Rossi retrieved her bag from the luggage carousel, and turned to make her way through her fellow passengers that were crowded around looking for their own baggage. The flight from Texas had been smooth and had arrived at Reagan International airport on time. Now Amber just hoped nothing had come up that would keep her father from picking her up. She had talked to him earlier in the day, before her flight had left Texas and he had assured her he would be there. She had also asked about his co-worker, Garcia, who had been shot last night. He had told her that she had made it through surgery and the prognosis looked good.

As she walked through the baggage area toward the exit, she turned her cell phone on. If he couldn't make it, she knew her father would have left her a voice mail. Though she really didn't feel like getting a cab and going out to her father's house alone, she knew it was a possibility. The big house outside of McLean, Virginia that he had bought when she was in college, had always seemed a bit spooky to her.

"I'm here," she heard a familiar voice say. Looking up, Amber saw SSA David Rossi walking in her direction. "Did you think I wouldn't make it?" he asked.

"I know how your job can get in the way of things," Amber replied. "I was prepared for that eventuality."

Agent Rossi smiled, as he reached out to take one of her bags from her. "Well, we are working on something. The team is looking into who would shot Garcia last night, though we have to keep things a bit under the radar. The team can handle things without me for a few hours. Aaron told me to tell you he said hello. He's looking forward to seeing again."

"It'll be nice to see him again. I haven't seen him since I graduated high school," Amber said, thinking of her father's best friend, whom she had met when the two had worked together years before.

"It's been that long," Rossi said, having forgotten the last time Hotch and Amber had seen one another. "We had dinner with him and Haley when you were out that summer, didn't we."

Amber nodded in response. She still found it hard to believe Aaron and Haley were no longer together. Not for the first time since her father had mentioned the marriage troubles for the two of them, Amber wondered if that was sign for her. A way for someone up above to tell her that getting back with Spencer was a bad idea.

"Reid said he would call you later, by the way," Rossi commented, bringing her out of her thoughts.

"I hope you're not giving him a hard time," Amber said, thinking of the conversation she had with Spencer.

"No more than any of your other boyfriends that I have met," Agent Rossi replied. "Just want to make sure he treats my little girl right."

"Yeah, well don't scare him off in the process," Amber told him. "I don't know if Spencer and I can make this work. Our careers already got in the way once, and I'm not sure either one of us is any more ready to give up our careers to be together than we were to give up on the pursuit of those careers back then. If it doesn't work though, I want it to be because of us and not because my father frightened him away."

Agent Rossi held his free hand up in surrender as the two of them reached the exit of the airport. As they stepped into the cool D.C. air, Amber was glad she had thought to put on her jean jacket when she disembarked from the plane.

David Rossi's voice was serious as he spoke. "I'm not trying to. I want you to be happy. To be able to find in a relationship what I was never able to."

"Maybe you just didn't look hard enough," Amber said, without really thinking. It was the first time she had ever openly criticized her Dad about anything, despite having arguments with her mother over her relationships. She wondered if the comment was going to start an argument in this situation to.

"Perhaps I didn't. Or perhaps I didn't try hard enough. Guess we'll never know, will we?" David Rossi said, a touch of sadness in his voice. "You've still got a lot of your life ahead of you. I don't want to see you spend it alone like I did."

"You're not alone, Dad. You've got me."

Agent Rossi reached out and put his arm around his daughter's shoulders, pulling her close as they walked. "That is so true," he told her. After a quick hug he let up on the pressure but left his arm across her shoulders.

"Just be careful what you say around Spencer, Dad. He's not like the other guys you've met. He takes things more seriously. While the others knew you were joking about some of the stuff, he's going to take you seriously. He told me one of your conversations ended with a veiled threat? He never did elaborate."

Agent Rossi tried to recall what he could have said to the younger agent that Reid could have taken as a threat. It didn't take him long to think of something. "I only told him that if he ever hurt you then I would probably have something to say about it. Just a normal father looking out for his daughter statement."

"No wonder he thinks you might shoot him."

"I wouldn't shoot him," Rossi said defensively.

"I know that. Trying to convince Spencer of that is a different story."

"Okay. I get your point. I'll be on my best behavior when I'm around him. Scout's honor."

"Dad you were never a scout," Amber replied, to which her father merely shrugged. "He's a big fan of yours you know. Even before he knew you were my father."

"I've figured that out. It still takes me by surprise when he starts citing stuff word for word and not just my books either," David Rossi said, shaking his head as he and his daughter made their way across the parking lot to his waiting SUV.

"It's nice if you go to visit some place historic. You don't have to worry about a tour guide if you've got Spencer around."

"I bet," he said. "Well, if this does work out between the two of you there is probably one thing I don't have to worry about."

"What's that?" Amber asked.

"I don't think Reid would ever get up the nerve to ask me for your hand in marriage before he proposes to you. Honestly, I think you'll have to propose to him if this all works out for the two of you."

"Be nice," Amber scolded, swatting her father's arm playfully.

"If you expect me to be on my best behavior around him, then you're going to have to take the teasing yourself. I've got to get it out of my system somehow."

"Like you wouldn't have teased me anyway."

The SUV was in sight now. Agent Rossi took out his key and unlocked the doors. After storing Amber's luggage in the back the two of them got into the vehicle. Rossi started it up and soon they were on the road toward his home in Virginia.

Amber had been to her father's house before, though this particular one he had bought after she had moved back to Texas. The place always seemed so empty. It was way to big for one person living alone and Amber often wondered why her father had moved here. Even with wanting to have room for family when they came to visit, the place seemed much too big for a single man.

As she followed her father up the steps, their footsteps echoed in the stairwell. The place would seriously creep her out if she stayed here too long. Behind them, Mudgie followed them up the steps trying to keep his owner and the new comer in sight.

They reached the top of the stairs, and David Rossi headed for the first room across the hall from the stairs. Opening the door, he walked into a bedroom decorated in blue and white. It was the room Amber always used when she came to visit him. He walked into the room and placed the luggage he was carrying next to the bed.

"The other stuff you had shipped out here, arrived yesterday. I've got it stored in the family room downstairs. I didn't see any point in bringing it upstairs, though if there is anything you're going to need, I certainly can bring that stuff up."

"No need. I don't think I'll need anything in the stuff I shipped until I get a place of my own, which I guess is one of the things I'm going to need to do soon."

"Not that I'm trying to rush you to move out or anything, but I've been thinking about that. Why don't you get settled and I'll make us something to eat and we can talk about that and any other details I can help you with, getting settled out here."

"Dad, I do appreciate your help but I am capable of getting myself settled. Besides, I thought you had an investigation to help out with."

"I do, but I also want you to know that I'm here for you too. As for you ability to get yourself settled, I'm sure you can, Sweetie, but as I'm around, and I haven't seen much of you over the past few years, I want to help out. Are you really going to deny an old man being able to fuss over his daughter a little."

"Well, when you put it that way," Amber said. She was thankful for the help. She remembered what it was like getting settled in Sitka and then again in Kodiak. In those places she didn't know anyone. She had only her fellow Coasties to rely on. It would be nice to have family in the area this time around.

"I'll be downstairs in the kitchen," David Rossi told her as he walked toward the door of the room. "Come down and join me when you're ready."

Amber nodded as she watched her Dad leave the room, Mudgie right at his heels, closing the door behind him. She looked around the room. Though well furnished there wasn't much to make it feel like home but then again it really didn't need to. As much as she loved her dad, she wasn't sure she could stand living with him for too long. She knew it wouldn't take long for her to feel like it was a restraint on her freedom. He was her Dad and it was his house, which meant his rules. Not to mention, she had a feeling Spencer wouldn't want to spend much time with her here.

As she looked around, she noticed something on the dresser. Walking over, she picked up the frame that was sitting in there and smiled. She couldn't believe her father had left the picture there. It was a picture of Vince, Maria, Mark, Vanessa and herself during their senior year at Caltech. They had been celebrating the football team's division Championship. Mark was in the middle of the group, still wearing his football uniform. She had left the picture here after spending that Christmas with her father.

Looking at the picture, she couldn't help but think about how long ago Caltech seemed. How young she had felt. Excited to try out new things. To spread her wings and chase dreams.

Well she had found her dream and deep down she knew she wouldn't give it up for anything. She was proud to be an officer in the United States Coast Guard. Proud to call herself a rescue swimmer. Honored that she had been able to make a difference in so many peoples lives. If she had a chance to go back and do things over, she wouldn't change that, not even if it had let her be with Spencer these past four years. She also couldn't deny that doing her job had worn her out. That those lives that they hadn't been able to see had tore at her soul. She needed a change. A new focus to her life.

That was what she was in Washington to do. She wasn't giving up her career, just redefining it. If she and Spencer could find a way to make their relationship work in that redefinition, then all the better. Amber knew that staying under her father's roof, though the safer way, wasn't the way she needed to go. She needed to be out on her own, as soon as possible. Her father understood that. Wanting to be out on her own didn't have to mean not accepting help from him.

She place the picture down on the dresser and then turned to her luggage. The first thing she planned on doing was unpacking her bags. She hated feeling like she was living out of a suitcase. She had a lot of things she needed to get done over the next couple of days before she reported for duty at Station Washington. Getting out from under her father's roof in that time frame wasn't realistic and she wasn't going to try. Still, she needed to decide what was going to need to get accomplished first.

After putting away her clothes and the few personal items she had brought on the plane trip with her, Amber stored the suitcase and bags in the closet where she had hung her Coast Guard Uniforms. Feeling at least temporarily settled, Amber left the room and headed downstairs. She walked slowly through the house, taking time to see what knew acquisitions her Dad had made since the last time she had visited him. By the time she walked into the kitchen, David Rossi had finished making a chicken stir fry and was placing two plates of it on the small table in the room.

"Glasses still in the same place?" Amber asked, as she headed for the cupboard they had been kept in the last time she was there. Mudgie, who had found a spot near the doorway to lay, watched her as she walked across the room, but didn't move from where he was.

"Yeah. You should know by now that your old man doesn't like rearranging things."

"Ain't that the truth," Amber said, thinking about the picture that was up in the bedroom. She wondered if her father even realized the picture was still there, or if it was a case of her having left the picture there and her father never finding any reason to move it.

After getting a drink for both her and her father, Amber sat down across the table from her father.

"So, you said you have been thinking about a place for me to live. Let me guess, you've already been out scouting available places, trying to weed out places that aren't appropriate for you daughter to be living in."

"Am I that predictable?"

"Dad, the year Maria and I decided to live off campus, you insisted on coming apartment hunting with us and I swear that poor land lady was scared to see us for any reason, out of fear that if she didn't get any slight problem that came up fixed pronto she'd have you knocking on her door next."

"I wasn't that bad. I just asked questions that two college students, living on their own for the first time, wouldn't have thought to ask."

"More like questions that most people looking for an apartment wouldn't think to ask. I'm surprised you didn't have a criminal background check run on her."

"Who says I didn't?" David Rossi replied. He smiled at the look his daughter shot him. "I'm only kidding, though the thought did cross my mind at the time."

"Somehow I don't doubt that," Amber said, stabbing a pea pod with her fork. "So, any decent apartments turn up in your hunt?" she asked before putting the pea in her mouth.

"I haven't exactly been looking at apartments," David Rossi replied. "Now, wait hear me out before you start firing protests at me. I know that you probably are not interested in owning a home right now. You're single and your job with the Coast Guard means that you could very well find yourself transferred to another post in a year or two. So here is my proposal, we find a small single family home or townhouse that you like and I'll buy it. You can then pay me a monthly rent which if you later decide you want to keep it, will go toward the purchase price of the house. If not, and you move out of the area, then I'll have a rental property I can find a tenant for or I sell it."

Amber thought about the deal. Her father had a point, that at this time, she wasn't sure what her future would hold or how long she would be in the D.C. area. The question was, did she want to deal with some stranger as a landlord or her own father. The prospect of being in her own house rather than an apartment was appealing. It also wasn't as if her father was out right buying the house for her, which she was sure he would do if he thought she would accept it.

"What kind of rules am I looking at?" Amber asked, thinking about rules she had to deal with in the past. Things like no pets or no putting nails in the wall to hang things up. Some more reasonable than others, but things that you had to deal with when you were renting or leasing a place to live. Being her father, she wasn't sure what kind of things he might come up with in this case.

"No opposite sex visitors allowed," he told her, managing to get the words out with a straight face.

Amber plucked another pea out of her stir fry and threw it across the table at him. As he dodge the flying pea, David Rossi smiled. It was exactly the reaction he had been anticipating. Mudgie, seeing the opportunity to get a hold of people food, got up off the floor and went in search of the vegetable.

"Okay, seriously I don't see the need for any rules. You are my daughter and I know you're responsible. You pay your 'rent', utilities, and don't burn the place down and we'll be good. We'll handle repairs as they come along," David Rossi told his daughter. "I'll even call and ask if I can visit before I come over."

Amber thought it over. She wasn't going to get a better deal anywhere else no matter how much she looked. It also gave her options for the future, and allowed her father to feel like he was helping her without it being a handout.

"Can I look at places before I give you a definite answer?"

Rossi nodded. "I was hoping you'd say that. The real estate agent is willing to take us to some of the places I've looked at, so you can see them as well as a few new ones I haven't seen before. Let me know when you want to go, and I'll give her a call."

"I'll let you know," Amber told him. "I've got some other things I need to get settled and you've got other things you need to concentrate on. We'll set something up after you catch the guys behind the shooting."

David Rossi opened his mouth to protest. He had put his job in front of his family so many times before. He hadn't liked where that had got him before. Could see exactly how unhappy that course of action was making Hotch. He was part of a team now. He didn't have to do this by himself. Except this time, it was one of the team that they were trying to help.

"Dad, it's okay, really. I know how much co-workers can start feeling like family when you spend long hours with them. Know how I would feel if this was happening to one of the members of my old flight crew. I appreciate you taking a few hours to pick me up from the airport but as soon as we're done eating, you need to go rejoin your team. You'll be miserable if you don't."

"As soon as we catch this guy, I'll give you whatever help you need getting settled," David Rossi promised.

The two of them continued to talk while they ate, David Rossi telling Amber about some of the properties his had already seen that he thought she might liked. When they had finished, Amber offered to clean up while her father went back to work. As she put the dishes in the sink, she heard the front door shut behind her father. Once again, she was hit with just exactly how big the house was.

* * *

By seven o'clock, Amber was ready to call it a day. Her father wasn't home yet, and the quiet of the house was a stark contrast from the arguments she had been witness to during her time in Texas. Heading for the upstairs bathroom, Amber drew herself a hot bath. As she lowered herself down into the steaming water, she felt some of the aches from traveling over the last few days fade away. The water was starting to feel cool, by the time Amber finally pulled herself out of the tub and changed into pajamas.

Returning to her room, she picked up the current novel she was reading from the dresser where she had placed it earlier and climbed onto the four poster bed. Propping the pillow up against the headboard, she settled back on them and opened the book. As she was reading for pleasure and not to try to drown out muffled voices, Amber was able to totally immerse herself in the book. So involved in the book she was, that the sound of her cell phone actually made her jump.

After realizing what it was, she marked her place in the book and sat it on the bed beside her. Reaching over, she took the cell phone off the night stand and looked at the screen. Spencer's name was showing.

"Hey, Spencer," she said, answering the phone.

"Hi. I was starting to think you might have already gone to sleep."

"No, I was just reading a book. What time is it anyway?"

"Almost nine o'clock."

"How's your friend."

"Holding her own," Spencer told her. "Garcia's still in ICU but she's awake and has been talking to us. We don't seem to be any closer now then we were this morning. This UnSub is smart. He's covering his tracks."

"You guys will figure it out," Amber told him reassuringly.

"I sure hope so. I hate to think that this guy might try again if he finds out that he didn't kill her the first time," Spencer said. "I just can't understand how this could happen. Garcia is the kindest person I know. She only ever wants those around her to be happy."

Though Amber had never met her, she knew a lot about the FBI tech from what Spencer had told her about his co-worker over the years. She also knew how much Spencer treasured the friendships that he did make.

"Life doesn't always make sense. A lot of people get wrapped up in what is best for them and have no regard for who they hurt to get what they want. If they see someone as a threat . . ."

"Who could ever see Garcia as a threat?"

"People fear what they don't know or they don't understand," Amber replied. "To someone who isn't capable of seeing the good in the things around them, someone who looks for the good in everything around, which is how you've described Garcia to me, is something they fear."

Spencer didn't reply to her last comment but Amber heard him yawn over the phone. She realized that Spencer was probably more tired than she was herself. Had probably gotten less sleep.

"Why don't you try to get some sleep. We'll talk later," Amber told him.

"This isn't how I wanted your first day here to turn out. I was looking forward to spending some time with you."

"I know. It's not like you planned this to happen. We'll see each other soon. I'll be around for awhile."

The two of them talked for a little while longer before they finally said good-bye. As Amber placed her cell phone back on the bedside table, she heard the front door open and knew her father had gotten home. Climbing out of the bed, she went downstairs to greet him before she turned in herself.

_**Tag to the end of the episode - "Penelope":**_

"Are you ready to go home, Baby Girl," Morgan asked, as he walked up to Garcia and Lynch.

SSA David Rossi didn't hear the technical analyst's reply as he continued walking toward JJ's office, putting his cell phone away as he walked. Things were finally starting to get wrapped up. Battle's body had been removed and they had all given their statements. This whole ordeal was finally over. Battle couldn't hurt Garcia again and their technical analyst would soon be back at work. Things would be able to get back to normal.

It was Wednesday night. Amber had been working at Station Washington for the past two days now. Two days that Rossi had barely seen or talked to her. He wasn't even sure how well she was fitting in at her new assignment. He planned on changing that tonight although, he had a feeling there was someone else Amber would rather spend some time with first, which was why he had called Amber a half hour ago, and suggested she come give Reid a ride home. She had just called and said she was in the parking lot, and Agent Rossi had told her he would send Spencer down.

Reaching the office, David Rossi knocked on the open door.

"Come in," JJ replied, looking up. She was sitting behind her desk, Reid occupying the seat across from her.

"You doing okay?" Rossi asked, looking directly at the blonde media liaison

"Yeah. All things considered," she replied. "Thanks for asking."

Rossi nodded and then let his gaze drift to Reid who was looking at him over his shoulder. "Just wanted to let you know, your ride is here," Rossi told the younger agent.

"My ride? I didn't call for . . ."

"I called for you," Rossi told him, interrupting his protest. "Figured it was about time that the two of you got to spend some time together. If she's anything like her father, she won't like being kept waiting either."

Reid flushed slightly as he caught on to what Rossi was telling him. He looked across the desk at JJ. Other than Rossi, she was the only one of his teammates that knew about Amber and him knowing one another. The reference hadn't been lost on the blonde agent either.

"Go on. I'm fine. I'll see you tomorrow, Spence," JJ told him, before he could say anything.

"I'll see you tomorrow, then," Reid said, as he got to his feet.

He headed out of the office, slipping by Rossi who still stood near the door. "Can I offer you a ride home?" Rossi asked JJ, as he watched Reid head toward the elevators.

"You know, I think I will take you up on that," JJ said, as she got to her feet. "I'm still feeling a little shaky. Thanks."

"Not a problem," Rossi told her.

He waited for JJ to put on her coat and grab her purse and then the two of them left the office.

"That was a really nice thing you just did," JJ remarked, as they stepped onto the elevator.

"Just offering a colleague a ride home," Rossi replied, purposely referring to the wrong incident when he knew the blonde was referring to the situation with Reid.

Rossi had figured out that Reid had confided in JJ about his relationship with Amber, when the media liaison had started asking him questions about his daughter. He had noticed how protective JJ was of Reid and knew the questions weren't just idle curiosity. The blonde had been trying to figure out what Amber was like and if she was good enough for Reid.

"That's not what I meant, and you know it," JJ told him.

"I just want to see my daughter happy," Rossi commented, choosing not to elaborate any further.

Besides, it was the truth. Despite his own failings at any meaningful relationships, he wanted more for Amber. He wanted his daughter to find someone that she could share her life with. If Reid was that person, then he didn't plan to get in the way of the two of them. No, he hadn't quite figured out how to take the youngest member of the team sometimes. The things the kid knew took him by surprise sometimes and David wondered at times if there was anything new the kid could learn and yet Reid did seem to continually be learning new things. Had a constant thirst for knowledge that seemed to be unquenchable. Nor did Reid have that air of superiority that Rossi had come across with other people with high IQs. He was down to earth, respectful and sensitive to others people feelings even though he was often awkward in social situations. Reid got excited about sharing information and sometimes didn't think about how the other person would react to what he was saying. Yes, Reid could get annoying at time but he wasn't insufferable like a lot of people David Rossi had met over the years.

~_She could definitely do worse than Dr. Spencer Reid_,~ Rossi thought as the elevator started its downward journey to the ground floor.

* * *

As soon as Reid stepped out of the building, he spotted her. She was standing off to the side of the main entrance, just within the light of the outside lights. Even on the edge of the shadows, Amber Rossi looked just as beautiful as he remembered her. He couldn't believe that it had been three years since he had seen her last. Three years since they had said good-bye at LAX. Though they had stayed in touch, had talked on the phone, it just wasn't the same.

Reid let go of the door, letting it close behind him but didn't take another step away from it. Instead, he stood there staring at the only woman he had ever truly loved. Sure there had been Lila, whom JJ and Morgan still liked to tease him about at times, but that hadn't been anything like what he had shared with Amber.

Hearing the soft sound of the door closing in the quiet night, Amber looked in the direction of the building entrance. Unlike Reid, she wasn't frozen in place at the sight of her former boyfriend and current friend. Not caring who might be around, Amber hurried toward Reid. Before the FBI Agent knew what was going on, she had thrown her arms around him and hugged him tight. It wasn't long before he was returning the gesture, enjoying the feel of her in his arms. The feel of her head on his shoulder, and her hair on his face. He closed his eyes, wanting to believe that there was no one else around except for the two of them.

"I've missed you, Spencer," Amber said, the words low though there was no one else around to hear them.

"This feels like a dream," he told her. "Like if I open my eyes, you won't really be here."

"Oh, I'm definitely no dream," Amber told him, finally taking a step back breaking the hug. She let her hands run down his arms, until they finally found his hands. "Look at you, agent for the FBI. I knew you could do it."

"It sure wasn't easy, not to mention if the powers that be didn't think I was too valuable of an asset to lose for other reason, I probably wouldn't have ever made it through the academy training. Your encouragement through those months helped too."

"Everyone needs someone to believe in them. I was just helping someone I care about realize his dreams and you did it."

"I only realized one of my dreams. My other dream seemed out of reach."

"Seemed?"

"Well, here you are. Our pursuit of our dreams have brought us to the same town once again. Maybe this time it will work out."

Amber heard more than just the words. She saw hope in his eyes. The same hope she had felt since hearing of her transfer to Station Washington.

"I think that's a dream we share," Amber told him softly.

They stood there, looking into one another's eyes, until finally Reid pulled his hands out of Amber's grasp. Amber was waiting for him to stuff his hands into his pocket, just like he had always done in college. Instead though, Reid put his arm tentatively around her shoulders.

"So where did you park?" he asked, as Amber slipped her arm around his waist, moving in close to him.

"Over there," she said, pointing with her free hand, as she felt him pull her closer, becoming more comfortable with the physical contact. She almost felt as if nothing had changed between them and she buried the lingering doubt of what the future held in store for them, choosing to simply enjoy the moment. She could deal with her worries in the days to come.


	10. Outside Interference

_**Las Vegas, NV 1999:**_

Saying good-bye to Vince and Amber, Spencer climbed out of the car. He walked to the front door, getting his key out as he went. Though the front porch light had been left on, the lights in the rooms in the front of the house were out. Spencer hoped that meant his mother was in her bed sleeping. Reaching the steps, he walked up them and put the key into the lock. Moments later he was turning the key and pushing the door open. Aware that Vince was still parked in the driveway, Spencer turned and waved before stepping into the house.

As he stepped through the front door, Spencer reached out and flipped the nearby switch, turning on the lamp sitting on the stand by the door. The house was quiet, and the sound of the door closing seemed to echo in Spencer's ears. Leaning back against the door, he closed his eyes. He had enjoyed himself today, but it had been a strange feeling. It had been awhile since he had spent the day with people close to his own age. There were only two other people besides Amber who had ever really even been friendly toward him, and only one of them would he really call a friend.

Parker Dunley, a class mate from high school, had always been nice enough toward him. Parker had even run interference for him at times with some of the teasing he had endured from the other kids. Spencer considered him more of an acquaintance rather than a friend. Ethan was about three years older than him. He had met him his senior year of high school when Ethan was a sophomore and a year ahead of his peers himself. Spencer couldn't tell you why the two of them had clicked but they had. When Ethan had came to Caltech Spencer's second year there, it had been such a relief. Finally, he had someone there to whom he could talk to. Could relate to on some level. There had been a fierce competition between the two of them in the few classes they had been it together, like there had always been when the two of them were together. It was a friendly rivalry though and one that both of them enjoyed.

Still, even Ethan hadn't known about his mother's problems until last year when she had suddenly had one of her episodes during their summer break from Caltech. Though Ethan had taken it in stride, Spencer never would have chosen to tell him. Deep down, Spencer always felt that it was his mother's illness that drove his father away and if her own husband couldn't deal with it, how could his friends. He also couldn't deny that it scared him at times. The illness scared him when his Mom got out of control, like she had last night when Amber had been on the phone. He was always afraid she would hurt herself when she got like that as he had lost count of how many times she either had or had come close. It also scared him when he thought about the fact that it could be passed on genetically. That what he was seeing in his mother could be the future that he had to look forward to. It was that fright that made him want to keep people who came into his life away from his mother. It was fright and not that he was ashamed of her, at least that was what he always tried to convince himself of.

Feeling slightly calmer, Spencer pushed away from the door. He would check on his mother before heading to his room. He had only taken a few steps away from the front door when he heard footsteps on the steps. Glancing up, he expected to see his mother. Instead, he found Mrs. Henderson walking down the steps. He suddenly became alarmed. Had something happened? Why hadn't anyone called him?

There were several different nurses who had been hired to help out and make sure that Diana Reid took the medicine she suppose to take to control her progressing schizophrenia. Normally, they paid three short visits each day with Mrs. Henderson spending a lot of time with her friend when Spencer was away. Being a widow and both her kids grown, Mrs. Henderson had the time to be able to help the Reids out. He hadn't asked Mrs. Henderson to stop by but she had told him that she was going to this evening. As he hadn't had any calls from her he had assumed that she had stopped by, found everything okay and then left.

"Mom?"

"Relax, she's fine now," Mrs. Henderson assured him. "I stopped by with dinner after leaving the dinner tonight. Diana was fine. We enjoyed a nice conversation while we ate. I was getting ready to leave when I noticed something wasn't quite right so I decided to hang around a little longer. Apparently there was some vandalism further down the street earlier this afternoon. The police were canvassing the neighborhood, trying to determine if anyone had seen anything."

"Oh no," Spencer said, closing his eyes. His mother had a deep mistrust for any law enforcement people or politicians. Watching a political debate or press conference was always a bad idea in his house, as either could easily send Diana Reid into a rant about the governmental fascists that were trying to control their lives.

"I don't think I need to describe to you what happened," Mrs. Henderson said, having seen Spencer's reaction. "It took awhile but I did manage to get your mother calmed down and the situation explained to the officers, who took it all in stride. The nurse stopping by set her off again as it was a new girl, quite young and this was probably her first difficult house call. I felt a bit sorry for the poor thing, though you may get a call from the agency tomorrow."

Spencer nodded. It wasn't the first nurse that his mother would have run off. She had done it to a couple over the years. Nurses that just weren't capable of dealing with his mother during one of her episodes. It didn't help matters that Diana didn't react to new faces well anyway. Following the episode with the police officer, there was no way a new nurse was going to get anywhere with her. The paranoia caused by her disease just wouldn't allow it.

"Thanks for the warning," Spencer said. "Where is Mom now?"

"She's upstairs resting comfortably. I was able to get her to take her meds about an hour after the nurse had left. She went to sleep a couple hours after that. I just didn't feel comfortable leaving her alone after this evening so I decided to wait for you to get home."

"You could have called me," Spencer said, feeling guilty about being out having fun while all of this was going on.

"I knew you were out with your friends. You deserved at least one night away from this," Mrs. Henderson told him. She closed the rest of the distance between them and placed the palms of her hands on Spencer's shoulders. "Look, I know how hard this decision will be for you, but I really think you need to start considering committing Diana to a institution that is capable of handling her disease."

Spencer had already started shaking his head. Mrs. Henderson was putting into words the one possibility that he had been trying to avoid even thinking about.

"Spencer, listen to me," Mrs. Henderson said, continuing to speak. "Diana's schizophrenia is getting worse. I know you saw that when you came home this time. Chances are she's going to keep getting worse."

"Then I'll just have to stay home more. Be around to help her more."

"Drop out of Caltech and then do what here in Las Vegas?" Mrs. Henderson questioned. "There is so much more for you out there, Spencer. You've got dreams. Dreams that your mother wants you to realize. I know. I'm a mother myself and though I'm grateful that Edward chose to come back to help with the café, I never wanted him to do it just for me. If I thought for a second that he wasn't happy, I'd push him to go do something else. So how do you think your mother would feel if she knows that you gave up your dreams for her?"

Spencer looked down at his feet. He knew the truth in her words but he wasn't ready to commit his mother. To give up on her.

"I just can't. Not now."

Mrs. Henderson nodded. She knew that was the answer she was going get. This was the first time she had broached the subject with him and she knew he wasn't going to accept it right away. Still, it was a possibility that had to be put out there. That Spencer was going to have to think about and accept because eventually it was going to have to be done. She could see that. Could tell that her best friend was slowly getting worse. Getting to the point that she needed more help than those who cared about her could give her. In her more lucid moments, even Diana realized it as she had made her friend promise not to let Spencer throw his life away trying to care for her.

"I'm going to be there for you, no matter what, Spencer but you can't just dismiss the possibility that your mother is going to eventually need more care than what you can provide her at home. It's okay that you're not ready to accept it now but as hard as it is, there might come a time where there is no other choice."

Spencer nodded, not trusting his voice.

"I'm going to head home. I'll stop by tomorrow to see how the two of you are doing," She told him, kissing his cheek. "If you need me before then, just call."

"I will," Spencer told her.

Mrs. Henderson grabbed her jacket and let herself out the front door. Spencer headed for the steps and made his way to his mother's room. Standing in the doorway, he watched her even breathing for a few moments. At times like this, everything seemed so normal. Things were far from normal though.

Still, he couldn't give up on her no matter what sacrifices he had to make. Since coming home for the holiday break, Spencer could see that the schizophrenia wasn't being controlled as well anymore by the meds. Her episodes were more frequent. The times when she seemed like a normally functioning person fewer and shorter in duration. He could see it and the visiting nurses were telling him the same thing. He had already made an appointment with her doctor to see about adjusting meds. The trick was going to be getting her to the appointment.

Spencer leaned his head against the side of the door frame that he was leaning on. He closed his eyes, hearing Mrs. Henderson's words in his head. He didn't know what he would do without her support and despite wanting to be mad at her, deep down he knew he couldn't be. She was only telling him the truth. Giving him time to deal with the issues within himself before the situation got to the point where he didn't have any choice.

He also knew that Mrs. Henderson was going to be there for him throughout everything. The Henderson's were the only people who had stuck with him and his mother through them through everything. Through the onset of the disease. Through his father walking out on them. All the while the disease got worse, slowly taking more and more of his mother away from him. Mrs. Henderson and her husband before he had passed away, had been a part of his life for as far back as he could remember. No matter how hard her words were for him to hear, deep down he knew she only had his best interests at heart. His mother's best interests.

Mrs. Henderson was also right that his mother wouldn't want to give up on his own dreams. He knew that because of the interests that she had always shown in what he did. The interest that she still showed. She told him often how proud she was of him. Anytime they went some place, she proudly talked about her son, the doctor.

Spencer sighed. How much longer could he go on like this? Would he even be able to return to Caltech after the holiday break? Given what he had seen so far while he was home he was having his doubts. Finishing the course work for his second doctorate may just have to be put off for a little bit.

This wasn't the worries that most nineteen year olds had to worry about. Even at his age, most of his peers still leaned on their parents to some degree. Very few of them were taking care of themselves much less their parent. Yet what could he do? His life had never been normal. He had accepted long ago that it never would be. His mother needed him but was he capable of giving her the help she needed?

Full of doubt, Spencer finally left the doorway of his mother's room and headed to his own.

_**Christmas Eve - Las Vegas, NV:**_

"Are you still messing with your hair?" Vince asked Amber as he walked out of the bathroom.

"Yes! It doesn't want to go up today for some reason," Amber replied, taking the bun down once again to try starting over. She turned and got a look at her friend. "Well, don't you look spiffy. Trying to impress Alicia?"

Vince was dressed in slacks, a dark green dress shirt, with a silver neck tie. His black hair was slicked back. Amber almost wanted to touch it just to see how stiff it was.

"Hey this is my one shot. If I don't make an impression while I'm here in Vegas, then I'm probably going to leave and never see her again. I just don't want to have any regrets. Do you think she'll like the necklace?"

"Yes!" Amber said, exasperated. He had asked that question a dozen of times since he had bought the piece of jewelry the day before. "I spent most of my afternoon yesterday helping you pick it out, she had better like it."

Vince nodded and watched as Amber tried to put her hair up once again. Again she yanked out the pins not long after putting them in, and let her light brown hair cascade down around her shoulders.

"Why don't you just wear it down for the night?"

"Because, I don't want it in my face all evening and I forgot to bring any clips with me and before you suggest it, no I'm not just pulling it back in a ponytail for a party," Amber told him, picking the brush up off the dresser and running it through her hair again.

Vince walked over to the bed and looked in the bag they had put the gifts, that they were taking to the party with them, in. The party was going to be held at The Desert Rose Café. Mrs. Henderson had closed the café to the public at four that afternoon and it would remain closed until eight a.m. the day after Christmas. Christmas Eve though, she held a party for her employees and families, as well as a few other friends she had invited. Amber, Vince, Chad and Alyse had all been surprised when they had gotten last minutes invitations to the party, which Mrs. Henderson had sent through Spencer.

Amber had quickly called Mrs. Henderson to accept the invitation, thanking her for her thoughtfulness as they hadn't yet decided what to do to make it feel like Christmas to them. Mrs. Henderson said she was just happy to be able to spread a little holiday cheer. She also told them that though there was no official gift exchange, that gifts were exchanged at the party and if they wished to do a gift exchange among themselves that would be fine. Amber and her friends decided to do just that, as well as getting something for Mrs. Henderson as a group. Being that they didn't know her well, they had pooled money and gotten her a gift card for one of the shops at the mall. In addition, Vince had bought something for Alicia who he had called and convinced to go to the party with him. Amber had also bought something for Spencer.

Vince retrieved one of the two gifts he had gotten Amber and walked back to her. "Open this one now," he told her, handing it to her. "I think you'll have more need for it now than later," he added.

Amber took the small package from him. Curious she opened it. Inside was the jewel encrusted butterfly barrette she had seen while they were shopping yesterday. "When did you buy this?"

"After you went to look for Spencer's gift. I saw you eyeing it while you were helping me pick out Alicia's gift. I figured it was the least I could do after dragging you from store to store. Now you can pull your hair back without having it up," Vince replied.

"Thank-you," Amber told him, putting the barrette down on the dresser and hugging her friend.

"You're welcome," he replied. "Now why don't you fix your hair before Chad comes banging on our door wondering what is taking us so long."

Amber smiled as she quickly pulled her hair back and secured it with the new butterfly clip. Vince grabbed the bag with the rest of the gifts and they left the hotel room. Chad and Alyse were just coming out of their room as Vince and Amber stepped into the hallway. The four college students headed for the elevators and were soon on their way to the Desert Rose Café.

The party had already gotten underway when the group had arrived at the café. Mrs. Henderson greeted them warmly as they came into the place. Amber dug the gift card they had bought her out of the bag and presented it to her.

"Oh, this was so sweet of you all. Thank you!," Mrs. Henderson told them. She then led them over to the counter, where she had set up a small Christmas tree, and found four gift bags among the gifts that were there. "I get a little something for all my employees and this year I included you all," she told them, handing each of them a bag.

Amber, Vince, Chad and Alyse thanked their hostess who then went to mingle among her guests. The door chimes indicated the arrival of someone else. Looking over her shoulder, Amber saw Alicia walking through the door.

"Vince, you're date has arrived," Amber said, nodding her head toward the entrance.

Vince looked in that direction. A smile came to his face as he excused himself to go greet Alicia.

"Way to go little brother," Chad said, getting his first look at the girl Vince had told him about. He was leaning on the counter, watching his brother and Alicia exchange greetings. Alyse elbowed him in the ribs for the comment. "She isn't as pretty of you, of course," Chad quickly amended, giving his fiancé a kiss.

"I think I'm going to see if I can find Spencer," Amber told them, smiling at the exchange. Without Vince with them, she suddenly felt like a third wheel.

It didn't take her long to find him. Spencer was sitting in a booth, near the back of the café with a guy that she seemed to remember seeing around campus and a girl who resembled Mrs. Henderson. Amber wondered if she was the café owner's daughter. Spotting Amber, Spencer waved to her from where he sat.

Amber made her way over to the table, where Spencer introduced her to his two companions. The guy was indeed a fellow Caltech student, named Ethan, who had also grown up in Las Vegas. The girl was Mandy Henderson, Mrs. Henderson daughter. Mandy was currently going to school at the College of Southern Nevada for business while helping her mother out with the café.

"So you're not a figment of Spencer's imagination," Ethan commented, as Amber took a seat next to Mandy. "I was starting to wonder as Spencer talked about you quite a few times over the semester but never introduced me to you."

"It was a busy semester for me after the swimming season started, not to mention the fact that Spencer being my chemistry TA made things a little awkward at times."

"Well, you two won't have that excuse come next semester so I hope that means I'll see you around. Maybe I can get Spencer to come to some more social events with your help," Ethan told her.

"I'll certainly try," Amber replied.

The young adults continued talking. It wasn't long before not only Vince and Alicia had joined them but also Chad and Alyse too. The guys drug a table over near the booth to make room for everyone. They enjoyed some good conversation while enjoying the food that had been prepared for the evening. The gifts were exchanged and talked about. Part of Amber's gift to Spencer got a few laughs as she had bought him three pairs of socks and had already mismatched them before giving them to him. She had also bought him a copy of the Last of the Mohicans, one of her favorite books that he had never read.

At one point, Amber and Spencer found themselves alone at the table. It was then that Spencer got up the nerve to give Amber the gift he had bought her. While Amber moved across the table so that she was sitting next to him, Spencer pulled a neatly wrapped package from the messenger bag he had wedged between himself and the wall.

"I felt a bit awkward giving this to you in front of everyone else. I'm not sure if you'll like it or not," Spencer told her as he placed it on the table in front of her.

Amber picked up the package, that was on the light side, and began unwrapping it. Upon opening the box that was inside, she found herself looking at a azure colored cashmere shawl.

"You may not get many opportunities to wear it out here, but I remember you saying that your Dad lived out on the East Coast."

"It's beautiful. Thank-you," Amber told him as she pulled the shawl out of the box.

"A gift like that deserves a kiss, I think," Vince said, in a playful voice from behind them. "Especially as you two are under the mistletoe," he added.

Amber looked up to see Vince behind them, kneeling on the seat of the adjacent booth. He was dangling a sprig of mistletoe over their heads.

"Very funny. That doesn't count," Amber told him. Beside her Spencer was looking down at the table.

"Mistletoe is mistletoe no matter how it got there," Mandy said, backing up Vince. Ethan and Alicia had also rejoined them by this time.

"Fine," Amber said, turning and giving Spencer a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Boooo, that doesn't count," Vince commented, backed up by the two girls who were standing there.

"Sure it does," Ethan said, coming to his friend's rescue as he saw how uncomfortable Spencer was getting. He reached out and snagged the mistletoe from Vince. "I don't want any distractions while I'm entertaining," he added, as he walked away with the mistletoe in hand.

Ethan made his way over to the piano. He placed the sprig of mistletoe on top of the piano and then sat down at the instrument. Moments later the first notes of Jingle Bell Rock started to fill the café. It wasn't long before couples started finding their way to the small section of the café that had been cleared of tables, to make a make-shift dance floor.

Though both Mandy and Amber made several attempts, Spencer could not be persuaded to dance to even a slow song. Amber did however share a dance with both Vince and Chad as Ethan made his way through a repertoire of both traditional and modern Christmas songs. She even said yes to a couple of guys at the party who came over to ask her to dance. All in all, Amber enjoyed herself and was glad she had chosen to come to Vegas with Vince for the holiday break.

_**Caltech Campus - end of February 2000:**_

Ethan Parker walked into the pool area behind his friend Spencer Reid. Though he enjoyed recreational swimming, going to a swim meet had never been an interest to him. In fact, Ethan probably wouldn't have been here now if it weren't for Spencer. His friend had convinced him to come with him to this swim meet. In exchange, Spencer was finally going to come see Ethan play at the Jazz Club in Los Angeles that he had been playing at for the last month or so. The club was a popular hangout for college students, as you only had to be eighteen to get in. It had also provided Ethan with the perfect opportunity to pursue his passion of performing music. Though a criminal justice major, Ethan was at Caltech for one reason - to please his parents.

"This sport has more of a turn out than I would have thought," Ethan commented as he followed Spencer up into the stands.

"Yeah, I was surprised myself when I came to last week's meet," Spencer commented. It was at that meet that he had met Amber's mother and step-father for the first time. Even Spencer could feel the tension between the three of them after being with them for only a few minutes.

"What? You went to someplace other than to work, the beach, or the library by yourself?" Ethan said in mock surprise. "I'm shocked."

"Very funny," Spencer muttered, as he came to a row with some empty seats near the aisle. He sat down leaving room for Ethan on the end near the aisle.

"So what events are Amber competing in again?" Ethan asked, growing serious. He knew the brunette was the only reason his friend was at all interested in the sport of swimming and he couldn't say he blamed him. Amber was attractive and if he didn't know that Spencer was interested in her, despite his friends protest to the contrary, Ethan would have taken a shot at asking her out himself. Competitive by nature, especially when he was up against Spencer, even Ethan knew better than to move in on a girl you knew your friend was interested in.

"The 200 meter backstroke, 100 meter freestyle, and the 4X100 medley relay," Spencer replied, as he settled his bag on the floor by his feet.

"So when are you going to get around to asking her out?" Ethan asked.

"What?" Spencer asked, looking over at Ethan. It was about as confused a look as Ethan had ever seen on Spencer's face.

"Amber? When are you going to ask her out? I can tell you like her."

"We're just friends," Spencer said in protest. He could feel his cheeks get warm and wondered if Ethan could tell too.

"Yeah, you might be 'just friends,'" Ethan said, making quotation marks in the air as he said the last two words, "but I can tell you want it to be something more. Tell her you like her. Send her some flowers or even ask her out on a date," Ethan told his friend. All the while he was talking, Spencer was shaking his head in protest. "Come on man, it's not like she's going to bite you or something. What's the worst thing that could possibly happen?"

"She'll probably laugh at me and then never want to see me again," Spencer told him, eyes focused on the pool in front of the stands, even though it was empty as the meet hadn't started yet.

"She won't laugh at you," Ethan told him. Since they had returned to Caltech following the holiday break, he had spent some time with Amber and Spencer. He couldn't read her well enough to know whether her interest in his friend went beyond friendship but he did know that she was sensitive enough that if Spencer did express his interest in her she wouldn't laugh. If the interest wasn't mutual, Amber Rossi would let the young genius down as gently as possible. Of course if he couldn't convince Spencer to admit how he felt if wouldn't matter.

"You're right because I'm not giving her the opportunity," Spencer told him. "Can we drop the subject please?"

"Sure," Ethan replied. "At least for now, but I'm not forgetting about it."

The spectators around them started quieting down as the swimmers for the first event started going to the starting blocks. The announcer came over the loudspeaker officially starting the meet. It wasn't long before the first swimmers were on the starting block, ready for the first event. As the starting gun sounded, once again the large room was filled with noise as family, friends and schoolmates started cheering on the athletes. Despite never having gone to a swim meet before, and not knowing anyone on the swim team personally other than Amber, Ethan still cheered loudly for the Caltech swimmers.

About three events in, the 200 meter backstroke event was announced. When Amber's name was announced, Ethan let out a loud whistle, drawing the girl's attention. Looking in their direction, she soon spotted Ethan and Spencer and waved to them before jumping into the pool for the start of the race. The race started. Beside him, even Spencer, who had been quietly clapping for the previous events when a Caltech swimmer was in the lead, found his voice as Amber soon pulled out in front of the other swimmers. By the end of the race, she had a decent lead on the second place swimmer and despite a sudden surge of speed from her nearest competitor, Amber easily won her first race.

"I'm telling you, you need to ask her out," Ethan told Spencer leaning close to be heard without shouting.

"She's not interested."

"How do you know if you don't ask her?" Ethan told him. "I'll ask her for you," he added with a sly smile on his face.

"Ethan, no!" Spencer said a look of panic on his face. He wasn't sure if his friend was making an idle threat or not. He really could see Ethan doing something like that.

"Relax, Spence," Ethan told him, clapping a hand on Spencer's shoulder. " I wouldn't actually do it."

Spencer didn't reply. He wanted to believe that but he knew if Ethan thought he was helping him, his friend would go through with it.

* * *

Spencer paced nervously out front of the Los Angeles Jazz Club, waiting for Amber to show up. He was starting to wonder if she was going to show up and wishing that he had agreed to her offer to pick him up. At least then he wouldn't be standing out in front of the club by himself. He glanced down at his watch. She had said she would be here by eight o'clock, as Ethan was slated to play at eight-fifteen. Right now it was seven fifty-five.

Spencer glanced from his watch to the front door of the club. He supposed if she didn't show by eight-ten then he would have to go in by himself. Spencer had promised Ethan he would come hear him play.

Ethan had been trying to get him to come to one of his gigs in Los Angeles since the beginning of the school year. Spencer had kept coming up with excuses. It wasn't that he didn't want to hear Ethan play, as his friend's piano playing was actually quite enjoyable. Spencer had heard him play at the Desert Rose Café back in Las Vegas a few times as well as at some recitals for school, but as he had been playing in clubs and other places Spencer didn't normally frequent, the young genius hadn't been to anything recently. Spencer hadn't want to come tonight either, but it had been Ethan's condition to coming to the swim meet with him.

Spencer jumped as he felt a hand come to rest on his shoulder. Instinctively he turned to find out who was behind him. He let out a sigh of relief when the young doctor saw who it was.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you," Amber said, withdrawing her hand from Spencer's shoulder.

"I was just preoccupied," Spencer said, the excuse sounding lame even to his ears. "I was starting to wonder if you were going to show up," he said, internally cringing at his choice of words. What if she took it as an accusation? He was ready to take the words back and apologize but before he could Amber started talking.

"You're not getting out of this that easy," Amber told him, knowing that The Los Angeles Jazz Club was the last place Spencer would voluntarily go to. The thought of what Ethan could have said to convince him to come had crossed her mind more than once but she had decided not to ask. Why he was coming to the club was Spencer's business and if he wanted her to know he would share. If he chose not to, it didn't change the fact that he had asked her to come along and as she had always enjoyed jazz music and had enjoyed Ethan's playing during the Christmas party back in Las Vegas, Amber had been only to happy to tag along.

Amber looped her arm through Spencer's. "Come on. This is going to be fun," she told him enthusiastically.

Without protest, Spencer let himself be led to the front door. They showed their Ids to the guard at the front door, who gave them armbands, indicating they were under 21.

Though Amber had never been to the club she was instantly in love with the place. The lights were kept low, and light jazz music played through the speakers. Tables surrounded the medium size wooden dance floor in the middle of the club. The dance floor was right in front of the stage, which was currently empty except for the piano and drums that were there. Waitresses made their way through the patrons, taking orders and bringing food and drinks to the tables. Posters depicting scenes from New Orleans lined the walls.

Her arm still looped through Spencer's, Amber led the way through the club, looking for an empty table. She found one, near the stage on the left side of the dance floor. There were four chairs situated around the small table, which would be good as Ethan was planning on joining them following his performance.

Spencer and Amber took their seats. It wasn't long before a waitress was standing next to their table. She placed a bowl of pretzels on the table as she introduced herself and handed them the menus of drinks and appetizers that the club offered. The two Caltech students both ordered ginger ales and the waitress headed for the bar, cutting across the dance floor which had only a handful of couples sharing a slow dance on it.

"I like this place," Amber commented as she took a couple of pretzels from the bowl. "The atmosphere is relaxing and it's not so loud in here that you can't hear yourself think or have to shout to be heard. Most of the time, clubs play the music way too loud."

Spencer nodded in agreement, unsure of what to say. It wasn't as if he had been to a lot of other clubs that he could compare this place to. In fact, the Los Angeles Jazz Club was the first club he had ever been in.

"Not exactly you're type of scene, is it?" Amber asked, taking note of Spencer's stiff posture and the fact that though he had a pretzel in his hand, he seemed to have no intention of eating it anytime soon.

"Not really," Spencer said nervously. The pretzel broke, small pieces falling onto the table in front of him. He dropped the main pieces of the pretzels onto a napkin, brushing the small pieces onto the floor.

"Relax. You're here to listen to a friend perform, nothing else. I promise not to ask you to dance."

"Good because I'd probably end up stepping on your toes or something," Spencer answered.

"So how is your course work going?" Amber asked, wanting to get on a subject that was familiar territory for her friend in the hopes it would put him at ease. It worked, as Spencer was soon telling her about one of his projects. Amber listened intently, asking questions when he got to something she didn't understand. Spencer was just finishing when the club's manager stepped out onto the stage to introduce Ethan.

Amber and Spencer were silent while Ethan performed, both enjoying the beautiful playing. After the performance, Ethan came down and joined the two of them at their table as the house band came back on stage, playing an upbeat jazz piece.

"You were wonderful," Amber told Ethan as he sat down across the circular table from her and next to Spencer.

Spencer echoed her sentiments in more precocious language and Ethan thanked them both.

"As well as you play, why aren't you a music major?" Amber asked.

"My parents," Ethan answered. "They think music is a nice hobby but want me to get a" Ethan raised his hands and made a quote gesture as he said the next words, "'real job'. I figured a major in criminology would make them happy and at least its interesting. I've always found reading true crime books interesting. Not exactly what most people would call light reading, but that's my cup of tea," he said, with a shrug of his shoulders. "I find the books by former FBI Agent David Rossi very interesting. Ever read any of his books?"

Amber nodded, a small smile crossing her face. "Yeah, I have read his books. I tend to stick more to fiction but someone recommended those books to me," she told him. She hesitated telling that David Rossi was her father, not because she was ashamed of that fact but because of the experiences she'd had in the past. People who were fans of his books or had heard of him all of the sudden wanted her to introduce them to him or to get them a signed book. Once they knew, she sometimes wondered if they hung around her because of who she was or because of who her father was.

"I found the book Deviance: The Secret Desires of Sadistic Serial Killers to be very interesting. Ever since reading his books I've been thinking that maybe the FBI may be the way to go for a career. It should be good enough to keep my parents off my back."

"Heard the training for FBI agents is very challenging, but I'm sure you could do it if you really wanted to," Amber told him.

"What I really want to do is play music but as that isn't going to happen, so I guess I'm just going to have to settle for my second choice."

"I know pressure from your parents can be rough, but you really should do what you want to do."

"Well, as my parents are paying the tuition that is kind of hard to do. They wouldn't pay for it if I wasn't majoring in something they considered worthwhile. I am managing to sneak some music classes in though, and they don't know about the gigs like this," Ethan said, gesturing to the club, "which is paying for some private lessons. So, Spencer tells me you're a computer science major. Does that mean you know how to hack."

"I know a few tricks," Amber admitted. "Like you though, I'm doing this because of my parent's expectations. Well, my mother really. I wanted to join the Marines out of high school which my mom is dead set against it. Her hope was that if I went to college I'd change my mind about joining up. The only thing that's changed so far is that instead of the Marines I'm more interested in the Coast Guard now."

"An admirable pursuit. What's your mom have against the service branches."

"The fact that my father served in the Marines," Amber replied. "My parents have been divorced since I was little."

"Sorry to hear that," Ethan said.

Amber shrugged. Her parents and their multiple other marriages was a subject that she preferred to avoid if possible.

"So, Spencer have you decided what career you're going to pursue once you get through with earning degrees?" Amber asked, deciding it was time to get the conversation off of herself.

Spencer shrugged his shoulders. "Not sure. I've had some offers already for jobs and I'm weighing my options. What I really want to do is join the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, but I'm still a few years away from being able to do that. You've got to be twenty-three before you can join."

The house band started a slow piece.

"So do you dance?" Ethan asked Amber. The change in the conversation took her by surprise but she recovered quickly.

"Yeah, I enjoy dancing."

" Well in that case," Ethan said getting to his feet and walking around the table. "May I have this dance?" he asked holding out his hand to her.

Amber smiled but looked over at Spencer before answering. They were just friends but Spencer had been the one to ask her to tag along. She wasn't sure about leaving him by himself. "Do you mind?"

"No. Go ahead," Spencer said, gesturing to the dance floor with one hand.

Smiling, Amber put her hand in Ethan's. "In that case, you certainly may," she replied, getting to her feet.

Spencer watched the two of them head for the dance floor. He picked up his glass and took a sip, part of him wishing it was him that was with Amber. Maybe it would be if he wasn't such a chicken. Hadn't he told her he couldn't dance.

Meanwhile, Amber and Ethan had reached the dance floor.

"So what do you think of Spencer?" Ethan asked as they swayed slowly to the beat of the music.

"Now that was a question that I wasn't expecting," Amber commented, not sure how to respond to the question or even if she wanted to answer it.

"Just curious. He's my friend and he's had it rough. I guess I feel the need to look out for him at times."

"We're just friends."

"Spencer likes you, you know. As in more than just a friend."

Amber could feel her cheeks grow warm. She wasn't at all sure what to say to that statement. "He actually told you that?"

Ethan smiled. "Not really. I'm not even sure Spencer is willing to admit it to himself. I know him well though. I can see the signs. Not to mention, in all the years I've known him, Spencer has never attended a sporting event, until he started going to your swim meets. Spencer isn't exactly the most outgoing person, as I'm sure you've seen. It wouldn't be easy for him to come out and tell a girl he likes her."

"Spencer is a nice guy but we're just friends," Amber told him. "I'm happy with things the way they are. I wouldn't want to do anything to jeopardize that friendship."

"Fair enough," Ethan said, accepting that he wasn't going to get any further on this subject.

The two fell silent as they danced to the rest of the song. When the song came to an end, Ethan and Amber rejoined Spencer at the table. As the three of them chatted, there were brief interruptions as other club patrons came over to tell Ethan how much they enjoyed his playing. It was almost midnight before the three of them left the club and headed back to the Caltech campus.


	11. Precieved Complications

_**2007 - Washington D.C. Area:**_

Once again, the weekend found Morgan at one of his properties, working to get his mind off of the last case he had worked. Though he hadn't been able to sleep much at the hotel last night, he hadn't even bothered with trying to rest this morning when the team had gotten in. The fact that they had been able to found the kid alive had him too keyed up. After all the horrors they saw on this job, it was always good to see one that had a positive ending to it. The memory of the parents when they had been given back their child was one that he would hang onto. Something to remember when things didn't go so well, which he knew would happen sooner rather than later.

So instead of heading home and trying to get some sleep, he had stopped at a twenty-four hour diner and ordered a light breakfast and coffee. He knew six a.m. was way top early to drop in on Garcia to see how she was doing, so he hung out at the diner until a more reasonable hour. When he decided it was late enough that his Baby Girl wouldn't bite his head off when he showed up at her apartment, he ordered a blueberry muffin and two coffees to go.

After spending a few hours with Garcia, he had headed for the townhouse that he had just about done. All he had left to do was the last coat of paint and then look for anything that needed touched up. His real estate agent had called yesterday saying that the potential buyer, whom he now knew to be Agent Rossi, may be by later today to look at the place again. He knew that Rossi's daughter had gotten into town but had yet to meet her. Morgan had to admit he was curious to find out what she was like. To find out if she took after her father. If Rossi planned on looking at the place again, that probably meant that his daughter would be with him.

Reaching the corner of the last wall he had to paint, Morgan pulled the roller away from the wall. He took a couple of steps backwards and looked around at his handy work. It wasn't a bad job if he did say so himself.

Morgan started cleaning up the painting supplies, hoping to have the house in a semi-ready condition when Mrs. Davis got here with her clients. He had just finished cleaning the paint from the roller and the brushes when his cell phone rang. Glancing at the screen he saw that it was Reid.

"Hey, Kid. What's up?" Morgan asked, hoping desperately that it wasn't work related, though usually calls from JJ or in a rare instance Hotch indicated that. The next thought that crossed his mind was that his friend had managed to get himself into some kind of trouble. Morgan was suddenly starting to wonder if he should have pushed a little harder when it came to Reid. The older agent knew that something was still bothering him, but had let it go. It was his experience that pushing too hard usually resulted in the younger agent drawing into himself more.

"Are you busy?" Reid asked, hesitantly.

Morgan got the feeling that Reid didn't want to impose on him and yet there was something very important on the young genius' mind. The fact that Reid was seeking him out meant that his friend was ready to talk. More importantly, Morgan knew that this had to happen now, while Reid was willing to open up. If they postponed it at all, Reid would just withdraw back into his own world again and getting him to talk would be downright near impossible.

"Nothing that can't wait until later," Morgan told him. "What's on your mind?"

"I need to talk to you about something. I need some advice."

"Okay. I'm listening."

"No, not . . . I don't want to talk about this over the phone. Can we meet somewhere?"

"I'm at one of my properties. Why don't you come over here," Morgan suggested.

"Okay," Reid agreed. "What's the address there?" Reid asked.

Morgan gave him the address he was at and ended the call. The dark skinned agent was left wondering what it was that Reid wanted advice about and if it had to do with his strange behavior the past couple of weeks. The kid had been quiet and more withdrawn than he had been, like what he had been like following the Hankle case and then Gideon's departure. Like himself, he knew that Reid tended to keep things bottled up inside. Tended to try to deal with things on his own. That worried Morgan, who knew from personal experience how much things that you bottled up could eat at you. Morgan figured Reid had learned to keep things inside due to his childhood. Dealing with the bullying at school and then needing to be strong for his mentally ill mother. Though he often referred to him as Kid, Morgan knew that in a lot of ways, Reid was older than himself, having been forced to grow up fast. Even faster than he himself had, following the death of his own father. At least Morgan's own mother had been strong enough to provide her children with the love and support they needed following that tragedy. When his own father had walked out, Reid had suddenly found himself as the one that needed to provide the support for his mother.

Reflecting back on things now, Morgan supposed it was only natural that Reid had tried to deal with the aftermath of what Hankle had done to him on his own. Always having been the one to give the support for so long, he hadn't known how to accept that support from anyone else, let alone ask for it. Though Morgan himself had made attempts to reach out, it had been new territory for him and those attempts had failed. He thought about Reid's confession on the plane coming back from the case in New York.

_~ "For the first time, I know. I look at them and I know what they were thinking and I know what they were feeling right before…"~_

Sure he had tried to give Reid some advice. Told him to use that experience to be a better person and a better profiler. What did he really know about that though? What did he know about being held captive? Of being tortured mentally and physically? Of being drugged against his own will?

He had noticed Reid's uncharacteristic behavior in the months that followed. They all had. The lame excuses Reid had often given for what he did. No one chose to really talk about it though. Oh, Morgan was sure JJ had probably made some attempts to talk to Reid and so had Gideon, as Morgan had later found out but then Gideon had left. Had walked out of their lives so abruptly that it had came to a shock to them all. He had seen the confidence that Reid had seemed to have regain, crumble once again. Morgan had talked things over with Prentiss, and she had made an attempt to reach out to Reid, though she had admitted afterward that she didn't know if it had done any good, and so Morgan had made his own attempt to talk to Reid.

Believing that Gideon's departure was the source of Reid's problems, Morgan had chosen to start the conversation by bringing up that topic. Hoping a confession of his own might get Reid talking, Morgan had told the younger agent how the senior profiler's departure had made him feel. That he had felt betrayed by someone he had trusted and looked up to. How he had wondered if the team could continue without the veteran profiler. The tactic had worked, as not only had Reid opened up more about his feelings following Gideon's departure, but had confided in Morgan another secret. It was then that Reid had confessed to him his struggles with drug use following the ordeal in Georgia. Confided that he had started going to NA meetings at Gideon's prodding and that with the older profiler gone, his resolve to beat the addiction was wavering.

Morgan had never felt more guilty about anything in his life. He had felt like a horrible friend for not stepping in sooner, despite Reid's protests that it wouldn't have mattered. That he wouldn't have been ready to accept help then. It didn't take long for Morgan to realize that it didn't really matter if that was true. That feeling guilty wasn't going to help anyone. The only thing that mattered now was that he be the friend that Reid needed now. That he showed him support and made sure that Reid stayed on the right path.

Morgan had done just that. Had been there through a couple of setbacks. Through the phone calls and visits at all hours of the day. Morgan had thought they were past all that. Even Prentiss had commented that Reid seemed more like his old self. Like he was before Georgia. That was until these past couple of weeks. Morgan desperately hoped his friend wasn't using again and hated himself for jumping to that conclusion first.

The sound of a car door slamming, brought Morgan from his thoughts. Going to the front door, he saw Mrs. Davis, Rossi and another woman get out of the car parked in the driveway. Morgan could see a slight resemblance between Rossi and the new woman and figured that it was his daughter.

~_She's pretty too_,~ Morgan thought, admiring the view. Though admiring is all he would ever do. Somehow he didn't think Agent Rossi would care too much for him flirting with his daughter.

"How's the house coming along, Agent Morgan?" Rossi called out as Morgan stepped out the front door.

"I'm just about done with it. Once this last coat dries all I have to do is any touch ups and I'm done with this house," Morgan answered, coming down the steps.

"Agent Morgan, this is my daughter, Lt. Amber Rossi. She's with the U.S. Coast Guard. Amber this is one of my co-workers, SSA Derek Morgan."

"It's nice to meet you, Lt. Rossi," Morgan said, shaking hands with her.

"Likewise, Agent Morgan. It's good to be able to put a face to the name," she told him.

Morgan nodded not sure what to say. It surprised him that Rossi would have mentioned him to his daughter. Morgan wondered what he would have said about him, he and Rossi having already had a few tense moments between them in the short time that had passed since the older profiler had returned to the BAU.

Morgan offered to show them around the house. Leading the way into the house, he led the group upstairs first. As they walked through the house, Morgan tried to make small talk with Amber Rossi. He found that she was much more open than her father was. Not wanting to seem too forward though, Morgan kept his questions to more neutral topics, questions about school and career.

After showing them around the house, and asking questions, the group said their good-byes. Morgan stood at the door, watching the three visitors head for the car. As they reached the car, Morgan noticed Reid walking up the drive toward the house. Amber Rossi spotted him at about the same time and changing directions, met Reid part way.

Though he couldn't hear the words said between the two of them from where he was, it was obvious to Morgan that the two of them knew one another. There was the fact that Amber had walked to meet him. The recognition and surprise on Reid's face as she walked toward him. There was also the easy way which Amber Rossi hugged Reid. Morgan didn't miss the stiffness in his co-workers body language as he hugged her back. Morgan didn't need to be a profiler to see that Reid was uneasy about something with the situation.

Amber and Reid talked a few minutes before walking back to the car. Reid quickly kissed her cheek as Amber got into the vehicle, and then closed the door, stepping back and giving her a final wave. Morgan watched as he gave Agent Rossi a small nod of acknowledgment as he started walking away from the vehicle. The gesture was returned as Reid continued walking toward the house.

"Hey, Kid," Morgan said, as Reid reached the front steps. The older man was holding the screen door open for him. "Take it the two of you have met before?"

"We were at Caltech at the same time," Reid replied.

Morgan could tell it was a bit more complicated than that but he decided not to press the issue right then. Reid had called him for some reason and Morgan didn't want to take the chance of saying or doing something that might keep him from talking about whatever it was that had prompted him to call Morgan in the first place.

"Why don't we go sit out to the back porch," Morgan suggested as Reid stepped inside. "No reason to be smelling wet paint when it's a nice day outside."

Reid nodded his consent though he didn't say a word. They walked through the bottom floor of the townhouse and onto the back porch. Morgan gestured for Reid to take the one chair that he had out on the porch. As the younger man sat down, Morgan went to the porch railing and pulled himself up so that he was seated on the railing facing his friend.

"So, what's on your mind?" Morgan asked, when it was obvious that Reid wasn't going to start talking on his own. He watched his friend as Reid played with the strap of his ever present messenger bag that he had sat on the ground at his feet. "Come on, Reid, you called me."

"This is ridiculous. I'm not some teenager anymore," Reid said, not looking up at him.

"You can talk to me about anything," Morgan told him, catching himself before using the nickname of Kid for the younger agent. Given Reid's previous comment, he wasn't so sure that would be the best choice right then.

"A few years ago, before I came out east for FBI training, I was involved with someone. I guess you could call it a serious relationship though both of us were tentative about it. I was very unsure about what was going on, and what to do, which I'm sure doesn't come as surprise to you," Reid said.

Morgan had to smile as he listened to his friend talk. Reid still looked lost when it came to dealing with the opposite sex. That hadn't changed. Morgan also felt a wave of relief wash over him. He'd much rather be helping Reid deal with relationship issues than to find out his friend was struggling with the drug addiction. Girl troubles was something he was much better equipped to deal with.

"The girl I was involved with was what you might call a flight risk," Reid said, as he continued to lay the situation out for his friend. "She had seen both her parents struggle with multiple marriages over the years. The idea of forever wasn't exactly something she believed in. Yet there was something between us that neither one of us could deny. Despite the fact that neither one of us were sure of what we were doing or really wanted it, we fell in love. At least I think it was love."

"What happened?" Morgan asked.

"We both had dreams that didn't exactly coincide. I had my eyes set on the FBI and she had her eyes set on the Coast Guard following graduation. Things were hard enough for us when we were living in the same city, a long distance relationship was out of the question. Neither of us wanted it so we went our separate ways. I never really forgot about her though and we did stay in touch as friends. Now, it seems our career paths are bringing us back together again. She wants us to try making it work again."

"That's good," Morgan said smiling. If anyone deserved a decent girl in his life it was Reid. He noticed Reid's expression didn't look all that happy. "Unless you don't feel the same way. Have your feelings for her changed over the years?"

Reid shook his head. "No. My feelings for her have never changed. I've even thought about giving up what I have here and moving to where she was stationed over the past couple of years. Especially after what happened down in Georgia but I guess the idea of walking into the unknown held me back. I mean if it didn't work out I'd have to start over on my own. Not something I was looking forward to doing again."

"Then I don't see what the problem is," Morgan told him.

"What happens when she's reassigned? Do we just break up again? I don't think I can watch her walk out of my life a second time."

"Reid, it sounds to me like this woman means an awful lot to you and if she's showing interest in getting back together, she obviously cares about you. That doesn't happen all that often. As many dates as I've gone on, I've never found that. You're getting a second chance at this, you'd be stupid not to try to make it work. As for what the future holds, worry about that when you get to it. Don't go borrowing trouble. Don't go condemning the relationship to failure before you even have the relationship going again."

Reid finally looked up. As his gaze met Morgan's, the older man could see the question there before Reid even voice it. "Then you think I should go for it?" Reid asked, and Morgan could hear the need for advice in the question.

"Yes, I do. If you still care about her after being apart for the last few years, then its worth taking a chance on it."

"Even if there are other, complications?"

"I told you Kid, worrying about what the future holds isn't worth it."

"I'm not referring to that. I'm talking about current complications," Reid told him.

Something suddenly made things click for Morgan. It seemed so obvious to him now. The way Reid had acted that day after coming out of Rossi's office. How nervous the kid was around their new teammate? Amber Rossi's comment about being able to put a face with the name. He had assumed that Agent Rossi had mentioned him at some point. Though that thought had surprised him he hadn't dwelled too much on it. Now, he had a feeling it was Reid who had talked to Amber about him. Then there was Reid's comment that he had gone to Caltech with Amber Rossi and of course the fact that both Amber and Reid's, as of yet, unnamed girl both were members of the Coast Guard, all added up to one thing.

"It's Rossi's daughter isn't it? That's who you're in love with?"

"Well, I'm not sure in love with is the right choice of words. I mean I care about her but I don't know if I would use that word."

"I don't care what word you want to use, she's the one you're talking about?"

Reid nodded.

"Yeah, I would say that could cause some complications. Does Rossi know?" Morgan asked, even realizing he knew the answer as he asked the question. There had been absolutely no look of surprise from the older profiler when Reid and Amber had been together outside.

Reid nodded again. He then rested his head in his hands, his elbows on his knees. "Man, if this doesn't go well, Agent Rossi is going to shoot me."

Morgan thought of his own thoughts when he had first seen Amber Rossi. He now had another reason she would be off limits. Knowing how Reid felt about her, he wouldn't jeopardize his friendship for a girl. Somehow though, he had a feeling Rossi would rather have his daughter involved with Reid than with himself. Still, if his daughter got hurt in this relationship, Morgan was pretty sure Rossi could make things very uncomfortable for Reid at work. Not to mention how would Amber and Reid being together effect the dynamics between the two federal agents on the job? Would Rossi even be accepting of the relationship or would he start making things hard on Reid? It was a possibility, though one thing Morgan was sure of, Rossi wouldn't physically harm the younger profiler.

"You're overreacting," Morgan told him.

"I've been hearing that a lot when it comes to, Agent Rossi," Reid commented. "And he already hated me before he knew I was involved with his daughter."

"Rossi doesn't hate you, he just doesn't know how to take you, which is true about a lot of people when they first meet you."

"Thanks a lot," Reid muttered.

"Come on, Kid, you know what I mean," Morgan said, seeing that Reid was taking his words more to heart than he had intended. "And those who don't take the time to get to know you don't know what they're missing."

Reid still didn't look up nor did he say anything. Morgan watched him closely, trying to figure out what to say to him. Before he could think of anything, Reid finally spoke up.

"I can't lose her again, Morgan. I know that. I just don't know what to do."

"Just be yourself, Reid. Don't worry about who her father is. Don't worry about what may or may not happen. Be yourself. Show her how you feel about her. If Agent Rossi has a problem with the two of you, then let him deal with it. Don't let it affect you. You and Amber are both adults. How the two of you feel about each other is the only thing that is important."

Reid finally looked up. "Easy for you to say. You're not the one that has to face Agent Rossi at work if anything goes wrong."

"If it comes down to it, I'll protect you, Kid," Morgan said lightly. He was trying to lighten the mood some but he also meant the words. He'd stand by Reid no matter what the outcome of this situation was. If Rossi had any intentions on making Reid's life difficult then he was going to find himself facing Derek Morgan.

"Love is a pretty special thing. I saw that with my parents. Though I might give a different impression to people on the outside, I hope I find what the two of them had eventually. Sounds to me like you think this girl is pretty special, so don't let anyone or anything get in your way."

Reid nodded but didn't say anything. Deciding the mood was too serious for his liking, Morgan spoke again.

"Amber seems like a pretty nice girl. When are you going to properly introduce us?"

"When I'm sure you're not going to try to steal her away," Reid replied, finally smiling.

Morgan placed his hands over his heart. "You wound me, Kid," he said lightly, glad that he had gotten his friend to lighten up a bit.

"We'll talk about it if I survive dinner with Amber and Agent Rossi tonight," Reid told him. If he was going to be with Amber, Reid knew he couldn't hide it from the rest of the team for long. Nor did he want to. Still, he wasn't quite ready for them all to know just yet.

* * *

It was six o'clock that evening when Amber found herself standing in the hallway outside of Spencer's door. They had agreed upon seven o'clock for dinner and Amber was hoping she wasn't intruding by showing up early. It would be nice to spend some time with Spencer before her father joined them.

Amber knocked on the door and then waited. It wasn't long before Spencer was opening the door for her.

"Hi, Amber. Come on in," Spencer said, stepping aside to allow her entry into the apartment.

"I hope I'm not imposing. I thought it would be nice to spend a bit of time just the two of us before Dad joined us."

"You're presence is never an imposition," Reid told her, closing the door behind her. He took the shawl that Amber had slipped off from her and hung it on the coat rack. "Is this the one I bought you the first Christmas after we met?"

"Yes. Surprised I still have it?"

"Honestly, yes," Reid told her. "I started dinner. Why don't you come join me in the kitchen?" Reid suggested.

The two friends headed across the living room to the kitchen area of the apartment which was separated with a counter top. Amber found herself looking around Spencer's apartment. It seemed much like she had thought it would. Much like his place back in LA had been like.

The place was neat and organized. Though on the smaller side, it didn't have a crowded feeling to it. There were several book cases, all of them filled with books. The desk against the one wall had covered with open books, loose leaf papers, and a currently closed lap top computer, a computer bag sitting on the floor leaning against the desk. The desk also had a framed picture of Reid and his mother.

"How is your mother doing? The last I heard from her was the birthday card she sent me back in September," Amber said, as she climbed up on a stool at the bar as they entered the kitchen.

"My Mom sent you a birthday card?" Reid said, pausing in mid-step and looking at Amber. It was the comment that took him by surprise not the question preceding it.

"Birthday and Christmas cards actually," Amber responded. "I do the same, usually writing a little bit of a note in them when I do. I didn't see the harm in it and I've always liked your mother."

"She likes you too," Spencer admitted. "She often asks about you when I talk to her. Would you like something to drink?"

"No, I'm fine thank-you," Amber replied and Reid washed his hands, and went back to his dinner preparations. "Do you still write to her every day?"

Spencer nodded as he placed the pork chops and other ingredients into the pan that had been warming on the stove.

"Spencer, you did what you had to do to protect her. Her illness was getting out of control. Thankfully nobody got hurt that night, and it worked out but who could have known what would have happened the next time."

"I shouldn't have turned my back on her."

"You didn't. You never have. You got her the help that she needed and then let her know that you care about her every day. Even when she was angry at you for committing her, you never returned those feelings. You patiently waited for her to accept her new situation and then showed her that you still loved her and continue to do that everyday with the letters you write to her."

"I just feel like I should've done more. Should be doing more."

"You're a caring, loyal, loving son and that's enough. So many people commit their family members to places like Bennington and then never have any contact with them. I know you're aware of that and that you could probably quote me statistics right now," Amber said, seeing the small smile that came to her friend's face. "You're the exception to that and it shows you care."

Spencer nodded, not sure at all what to say. Though he had resisted her presence in the whole situation at first, Amber had stood by his side through that whole ordeal in Vegas when he had finally committed his mother to Bennington. She had cancelled her ski trip and spent Spring Break with him. Had been his source of support through it all. Had been the light house that had kept him from getting lost in the sea of guilt that he constantly found himself in. He didn't think he had ever told her that.

"I think I would have let the guilt eat away at me over the years if it hadn't been for you," Spencer said, looking over his shoulder at her. "I'm not sure I ever thanked you for that."

"Not in words, but I've known."

"Why?"

That one word encompassed a lot of questions. Why had she stayed even when he had told her to go that night? Why had she given up her ski trip to help him figure out the mess his family life had become? Helped him research places? Shown support through those first months? Always been there to listen whenever he needed to talk?

"At first, because I realized that week that I was falling in love with you. Later, it became more than that. I made a promise to your mother that first time we went to Bennington to see her."

Spencer looked at her in surprised. Neither his mother nor Amber had ever even hinted to him about any promise between them. Though on some level, he guessed he should have known.


	12. Turning Point

_**Los Angeles, March 2000:**_

The weeks passed. Amber found herself spending more and more time with Spencer. Sometimes, they were joined by Ethan or her own friends, particularly Maria. In fact, after having met at one of the Caltech swim meets, Maria and Ethan started talking to each other and a week after meeting the two of them went out of their first date.

Before they realized it, mid-terms were occurring and spring break was just a few days away. Amber and her friends had planned a ski trip for the week of spring break. Though Amber had extended an invitation to Spencer, he had declined to join them. However, Maria had convinced Ethan to tag along, though he had never been skiing before. Amber was looking forward to it as she hadn't been skiing since she had gone skiing in Vale with her father two years ago.

The Wednesday before spring break found students racing to meet deadlines for papers and projects that were due before they left campus. As soon as she had finished her final class of the day, Amber had placed herself in front of her computer to work on her assignment for her programming class. As she often did when working on her computer, the computer science major had soon lost track of the time. The project wasn't due until Friday, but as she was close to completing it, Amber had every intention on finishing it that night. She didn't even break for dinner, though Maria made an attempt to get her to come to the dining hall with her.

It was a little bit before eight o'clock, when Amber finally saved the program for a final time. She logged into the site, to submit the program for grading, glad to have her final major assignment before spring break finished. As the confirmation message of the assignment being submitted came up on the screen, Amber leaned back in her chair and lacing her fingers together, stretched her arms up above her head.

"Does that mean that you're finally coming back from cyber land," Maria asked, looking up from her notes. She was seated on her bed, a small lamp illuminating the area below the upper bunk.

"Yes it does. The assignment is done and turned in."

"Good, then how about you and I head down to the Sun and Surf Café. You haven't eaten and I'm in the mood for a sundae. I need to take a break from studying," Maria suggested hopefully.

Amber heard her stomach growl at the mention of food. Maybe Maria's idea wasn't such a bad one

"Guess I can finish that reading assignment for philosophy class when we get back," Amber replied, getting up from her chair.

Leaving her notes where they were, Maria had scooted off the bed and was standing next to her friend and roommate in a matter of minutes. The two girls grabbed their purses, slipped their feet into sandals and were soon heading out of the dormitory.

It wasn't long before they were sliding into the booth at the Sun and Surf Café. They ordered drinks and while Amber started looking over the menu to decide what she wanted to eat for the dinner she had skipped, Maria asked the waitress for a desert menu. By the time the waitress had come back with the requested menu, Amber had decided what she wanted. She placed her order and handed the menu to the waitress.

"Is Spencer working tonight?" Maria asked, not looking up from the menu. The Sun and Surf Café served eight different sundaes and she was having trouble deciding which one she wanted to order.

"He's suppose to be working until nine-thirty tonight," Amber replied, scanning the café. "I don't see him though."

"See any wet customers?" Maria asked, laughing as she still debated which sundae to order.

"He only spilt the drink that one time. He's waited on us plenty of other times without incident but you're not going to let it go, are you?"

Maria finally looked up. Glancing over the top of the menu at her friend, she smiled. "Not a chance, because I enjoy watching how fast you get defensive. Say what you want but I think somebody has got a crush."

"I do not. Besides there is no reason to ruin a perfectly good friendship by letting other feelings get in the way. Chances are, one of us would just end up getting hurt, and I'd lose a good friend in the process."

"Or, you could find that special someone that you're going to live the rest of your life with."

"According to my mom, their isn't any room for romance when someone is involved in the military or law enforcement."

"Have you decided what you would like," their waitress asked as she returned with their sodas.

Maria nodded as she placed her order for the sundae. Before she could respond to Amber's last statement though, her best friend changed the subject.

"Are you ready for your test tomorrow?" Amber asked, as she picked up her glass.

The two girls talked about their classes for a little while. While they chatted, Amber had spotted Spencer waiting on tables on the other side of the café. She didn't know if he saw her or not and not wanting to be the possible cause of any accidents, Amber didn't call out to him. By the time Amber's meal and Maria's sundae had arrived, the two girls had changed gears from their courses to talking about the upcoming ski trip.

"It's going to be so much fun. I'm looking forward to meeting Alicia. She sounds like a really nice person."

"She is," Amber replied, thinking of the waitress from the Desert Rose Café that Vince had met over the holiday break. Vince had surprised her by keeping in touch with Alicia and had even invited her along on the ski trip with them. "I guess Chelsea and I are going to be hanging out a lot as all you love birds hit the slopes together. Of course, knowing Chelsea it won't take her long to find herself a guy to hit on and leave me by myself."

"Too bad you couldn't convince Spencer to join us."

"Breaking my neck is not how I plan on spending my Spring Break," Spencer said, in response to Maria's comment as he walked up to the table. He had just gotten done with his shift, and as he had spotted Amber and Maria while working, he had decided to stop by their table before heading home. "Mind if I sit down?" he asked, hesitation evident in his voice.

"Have a seat," Amber said pushing her empty plate toward the middle of the table and scooting over. As Spencer sat down where she had been sitting, placing his bag on the seat in between them, she reached over and grabbed her half-full glass of soda.

"Is there really a high risk of injury with skiing?" Maria asked, bracing herself for the numbers that were about to get thrown her way. They had all learned that asking Spencer any question was going to result in more information than they really wanted, but this was something she was interested in having answered so she figured she'd take the risk.

"Well statistically speaking skiing isn't any more dangerous than other high-energy participation sports. It's even safer than some common activities. Deaths attributed to skiing accident are on average 38 per year while serious injuries are at the average of about 42 per year. Both figures happen at about a rate of .80 per million skier and snowboarding visits. Minor injuries are more frequent. Now comparing skiing to swimming and bicycling, which due to the difference in comparing exposure to risk, can be difficult, you'll see that skiing is actually relatively safe. Skiing and snowboarding has a fatality of about 3.69 per million participants compared to a fatality rate of 54.3 per million participants in swimming and 22.3 fatalities per million participants in bicycling.*"

"Skiing of course takes a certain amount of coordination and athletic ability, and as I'm not exactly athletically inclined and clumsy at times, skiing holds a greater risk for me than some other people."

"Well, what do you know Amber, you're probably safer skiing than you are swimming."

"That's not completely accurate as given the level of Amber's swimming ability the chances of her drowning as compared to say you or me are statistically less likely."

"Somehow, that doesn't make me feel all that good," Maria commented.

"Can I get you anything else?" their waitress asked, showing up at the table.

Amber and Maria exchanged looks and silently agreed that they were ready to leave.

"Nothing else, thank-you," Amber replied.

"I'll be right back with your check," the waitress said and disappeared from sight.

"So what are your plans over Spring Break, Spencer?" Maria asked, looking across the table at the young graduate student. She was hoping it was a question she could ask without getting a whole bunch of statistics.

"I'm not as far along on my dissertation that I would like to be, so I'll probably work on it."

"Spring Break is suppose to be for fun not schoolwork," Maria told him.

Spencer didn't have time to answer as his cell phone rang. Looking down at the screen he saw Mrs. Henderson's number on the screen. "Um, excuse me a minute," he told the two girls getting to his feet and walking away from the table a little.

"You need to get the guy to lighten up a little bit," Maria told Amber.

"Well, the dissertation is important. If I were going for my doctorate I might forgo some fun to complete one myself," Amber replied.

Their waitress came back with the check. Amber and Maria were in the process of figuring out how much each of them owed when Spencer came back.

"I'm sorry, I've got to go," he told them, as he snatched up his bag from the seat beside Amber.

Amber noticed that the color had drained from Spencer's face and he was wearing a panicked look.

"What's wrong?" Amber asked.

"Family emergency. I need to get back to Las Vegas as quickly as I can," Spencer told her, and started to walk away.

Amber reached out and grabbed his hand. "Hold up. I just need to drop Maria back off at campus and then I'll drive you."

"You've got classes . . ." Spencer told her, as she let go of his wrist.

"Nothing I can't make up," Amber assured him, taking out some money from her wallet to cover the bill and a tip. She put it down on the table as she slid out of the booth.

On the other side of the table, Maria was also getting to her feet. The three of them hurried out of the café and out to Amber's pick-up truck. It wasn't long before, Amber had the truck on the road and was heading back to campus.

"Do you need to stop by your place and get anything, Spencer?" Amber asked as she slowed the pick-up for a red light. She looked up to see his face in the rearview mirror.

Spencer shook his head even as he spoke. "No," he told her. "I just need to get home as soon as possible."

"Okay," Amber replied. She wanted to ask Spencer what was going on but she didn't want him to feel like he was prying.

She dropped Maria off at their dorm building. Maria got out of the truck and Spencer climbed out of the back seat.

"Call me and let me know when you get to Vegas," Maria told her friend as Spencer climbed into the passenger seat.

"I will," Amber told her, as Spencer pulled the front door shut.

As Maria headed for the dorm building, Amber pulled the truck out of the parking lot. She kept the truck just above the speed limit as she headed through the city to interstate 15. She knew that Spencer wanted to get there quickly but getting a ticket wasn't going to be conducive to that either.

"Spencer, you should probably call Ethan and let him know where you're heading so he won't worry," Amber suggested.

"You're right," Spencer said, absently though he took his cell phone back out to make the call.

_**Las Vegas:**_

It was approaching two o'clock in the morning when they saw the sign for Las Vegas ten miles. Other than stopping for gas, Amber had been driving straight through. Amber and Spencer hadn't talk much during the trip, but finally Amber got him to tell her what was going on.

Spencer had admitted to her that his mother suffered from schizophrenia. He told her about Mrs. Henderson telling him back around Christmas time that things were getting worse, which he had seen for himself when he had been home. The reports over the past months had been much the same and despite the doctor's switching medicine and increased visits from home health nurses, it was becoming more apparent that Diana Reid couldn't be living on her own anymore. Mrs. Henderson had even been staying more with Diana than at her own home the last couple of weeks.

"I had planned on coming home over Spring Break to deal with things," Spencer had told Amber. "Things are getting too out of control though. The visiting nurse couldn't get Mom to take her meds today, and apparently left after being threatened. The nurse called Mrs. Henderson who ended up leaving the café early to check in on her. She wasn't able to get into the house though."

"If she's been staying there, wouldn't Mrs. Henderson have a key?"

Spencer nodded, though with her eyes on the road, Amber couldn't see the gesture. "Apparently, Mom secured the dead bolt to the front door and barricaded the back door with something because the door won't budge even after she unlocked it. Mrs. Henderson finally did get my mom to answer her phone and she went on about government fascists being out to get her and that she wasn't coming out."

"Government fascists?"

"She didn't take her meds. Chances are this wasn't the first time. Her illness is making her hear and see things that aren't there."

"What are you going to do?"

"Try to talk to her. To reach her so she'll let me in," Spencer said. The only other option was to call in the police and have them break into the house. Somehow, he had to make sure that it didn't come to that.

The two friends fell silent until they got into the city and Spencer started giving Amber directions to his house. As she pulled her truck into the drive way behind the other car there, Mrs. Henderson got out of the car where she had been sitting.

"Thanks for the ride," Spencer said, putting his messenger bag over his head and reaching for the door handle. "I really appreciate it. I'll call you when I get things under control."

"What? Wait. Maybe I can help."

Spencer shook his head. "The less people around right now, especially people my mother doesn't know, the better chance I have of reaching her. I can handle this. You've got classes and that ski trip coming up. Go. I'll call you," he told her, climbing out of the car.

Amber nodded. If Mrs. Reid was already convinced people were out to get her, she could understand how seeing a stranger would make things worse right now. Spencer closed the passenger door before she could say anything. She watched as he walked toward Mrs. Henderson. As much as she wanted to be there for him, right now she just didn't know what she could do.

Reluctantly, she backed the truck out of the driveway. She did know one thing, she wasn't heading back to Caltech that night. She didn't have anything due before the break started, as she had turned in his last assignment before going out with Maria. She also didn't have any other tests. She could afford to miss a couple of days of classes. As for the ski trip, she would call Maria and tell her she wasn't coming. There was no way she could go out skiing knowing that Spencer was dealing with all of this back here.

Right now, she'd find a place to stay near-by and get some rest. If she didn't hear from Spencer by tomorrow afternoon, then she'd call him.

* * *

Amber stood at the window of her room at the Days Inn she had checked into. She had already called Maria and broke the news to her. Her friend was disappointed but understanding and had promised to break the news to the others. Now she was trying to get a hold of Spencer, who hadn't called her that morning.

Amber was starting to expect his voice mail to pick up, when the phone went silent in mid ring. Moments later she heard his voice.

"Hello," Spencer said, sounding distracted and tired.

"Spencer, it's Amber. Did I wake you?"

"No, I was just thinking about some things."

"How's your mother?"

"Still sleeping," he told her. "Thanks again for giving me a ride home at the last minute like that. I really appreciate it."

"It's no problem. I'm always willing to help out a friend. In fact, if you'd like some company I could come over there. Might help to have a sounding board."

"Come over? I thought you went back to Los Angeles."

"You're kidding, right?" Amber said, surprised that Spencer would even consider the idea that she would just head back to Los Angeles like nothing had happened. "I never could have made the drive without getting some sleep for starters, and second of all, even though you didn't want me around last night, I had a feeling that might change. I got a room at the Days Inn."

"You should head back. I don't want to keep you from your classes and you've got that trip with your friends . . ."

"I'm staying in Vegas for the foreseeable future and there is nothing you can do to change that," Amber told him. "Now if you insist on keeping me at arm's length then fine, I won't impose but I'm here for you Spencer. All you have to do is give me the word and I'll come to you."

"I wouldn't mind the company but I have to warn you, my Mom . . . well, I can't make any promises what she might be like when she wakes up."

"I understand. So does that mean you want me to come over?"

"Yeah. Thanks."

"No problem. I'll see you soon," Amber tells him, before ending the call.

It wasn't long before she was heading back to Spencer's place. After two wrong turns, she had finally retraced her steps. Pulling her truck into the driveway, she parked it behind the same car that was there the night before. She assumed it was Mrs. Henderson and figured the lady had either never left last night or had come back. Getting out of the truck, she walked past the car and up the fronts steps, knocking on the front door.

It wasn't long before, Spencer opened the door. Instead of inviting her in though, Spencer stepped out onto the front steps.

"Do you mind if we go for a walk? Mrs. Henderson just came back and I need to get out of the house for a little while."

"Of course not," Amber replied.

Spencer pulled the door shut behind him and the two of them walked down the driveway toward the sidewalk. They walked in silence for awhile. Amber wasn't sure what to say. The whole situation was new to her and she was afraid to say the wrong thing. On the other hand, Spencer just wasn't sure how to put into words what was going on inside of him. He had dealt with this alone for so long and yet here she was. After his brusque dismissal of her the night before, she had hung around.

"Mom woke up not long after you called," Spencer said, finally breaking the silence. "She was actually lucid. Like last night never even happened. She's having tea with Mrs. Henderson right now and they were talking about their time at college. It's how it should be and its moments like that, which make the decision I know I need to make so hard."

Amber remained quiet, not knowing what she could say that would be adequate. Instead, she slipped her hand into his. As she grasped his hand, she could feel the tenseness there but he didn't try to pull his hand away.

"I've been dealing with this alone for so long. I had to. I didn't have a choice after my father walked out on us. It's just getting to be harder and harder. Or maybe it's just me? Maybe I'm just trying to take on too much? Maybe I just need to drop out of Caltech and come back to Vegas?"

"Do you really think that's what your mother would want? You really think she wants you to give up your dreams to live with her your whole life?"

"I'm her son. I'm suppose to be there for her."

"How many teenager are taking care of their parents?" Amber asked. Spencer didn't answer and she hadn't expected one. "Most people your age are still depending on their parents for help. You're not. Instead you're not only taking care of yourself but her too. And I understand how much you want to be there for her but you need to look at the big picture. If your mother's illness is getting worse, she's going to need more and more help. Sure you could drop out of college, give up your dreams and devote your life to her but what happens further down the line, when your fifty years old and she passes away and you find yourself alone with all these regrets of things you never got to do."

"I don't want to turn my back on her. Leave her alone like my father did to her."

"Getting her the medical help and care that she needs is not turning your back on her."

"Mrs. Henderson has been saying the same thing," Spencer told her. "And she's been helping out so much since I've gone away to college and I know its taking her away from her own family. I just don't want to turn my back on her but I just don't know how much longer I can live like this."

Amber squeezed the hand she was holding. What she wanted to do was pull her friend into a hug but she knew Spencer wouldn't be receptive to it. Not out in the middle of the street in the neighborhood he grew up in.

"This isn't an easy decision to make, and as young as you are, well, we shouldn't have to make these kind of decisions, but this is how things are. Mrs. Henderson, your mom's doctors and nurses, myself well we can give you all the advice in the world but the final decision is yours."

"When I got that call last night . . . well, it was like my heart stopped. It worked out well this time but what if next time I can't reach her? What if I had to call the cops in to get into the house? What if she got hurt? It's too much. And I know I can't keep doing this. Can't keep asking Mrs. Henderson to keep doing this. I've known it for awhile. I've even been researching facilities in the area that could give my mother the care and medical help that she needs. I've been putting off doing anything about it though. Logically knowing what I need to do and actually doing it are so different."

"This isn't going to be easy no matter how long you put it off. You said you've been researching facilities," Amber ventured. Spencer nodded next to her. "Then how about we go check places out in person."

"Your ski trip . . ."

"I've already told them I'm not going. I'm staying here in Vegas to see you through this."

"You don't have to."

"I want to," Amber told him.

Spencer stopped walking. He turned and looked at her. "Thank-you," he told her, the tone of his voice conveying so much more than those simple words.

* * *

The house was quiet. In the living room, Amber and Spencer had been sitting in silence for hours, ever since Amber had arrived at the house and had managed to get Spencer to move from the floor of the office where he had been when she had arrived.

Today was the day the orderlies from Bennington Sanitarium had come to take Diana Reid away. Spencer had insisted it was something that he had to do alone and Amber had respected that. She had stayed at the hotel waiting for him to call. At four o'clock he still hadn't called, so Amber had tried calling him. Forty-five minutes later, he still hadn't returned her calls and wasn't answering so she had headed for his house. She had found him sitting on the floor of his mother's office, hands wrapped around his knees and head resting on his knees, crying.

Amber knew there wasn't any words that could adequately console him in this situation. Instead of trying to talk, she had gotten him to move from the office to the living room. Now, three hours later, Spencer was curled up on the longer section of the L shaped couch. He was hugging one of the pillows close to him and he had fallen asleep.

Amber had made herself comfortable on the shorter section of the couch. The only light in the room was coming from the lamp on the connecting end table of the sectional. She had propped a pillow underneath her head, but she wasn't tired. Instead she was watching her friend sleep.

Despite the tousled hair, and the tear stained face, Amber realized for the first time just how good looking Spencer was. She thought about all the teasing she had taken from Maria and her other friends over the months. They were all convinced that she liked Spencer despite her denials. She had just kept insisting that they were just friends and though that was true, Amber realized that there was something more under the surface. What she felt for Spencer went deeper than how she felt about her other friends, even Maria and Mark whom she had grown up with.

That realization scared her. She thought about her parents and their multiple marriages between them. Was this how it started? Had her parents felt this way about each other at one time?

She thought about how that relationship had turned out. Every conversation between the two of them anymore usually ended in an argument. It had ever since she was twelve and her mother's third husband had raped her. Her Dad blamed his mother for putting their daughter in that situation. For not seeing the signs. More than that though, Amber thought her father hadn't forgiven himself for not being able to protect his daughter.

There had been a time when she had blamed them both. Had blamed herself. A couple years of therapy had shown her that the only one at fault in the situation was her stepfather.

Still, the thought of a relationship scared her. Even after her stepfather had raped her, her mother had stayed loyal to him. Going to see him in jail for the next couple of years. She claimed she loved him. Amber thought that if love could make you blind as to exactly how much of a creep someone was then it was a feeling she didn't want to experience. Then there was her father. He often let himself get distracted by his work and forgot to show the people who were important in his life how much he cared about them until it was too late. He was careless when it came to love.

Given her exposure to the emotion growing up, it was no wonder that she was scared to experience it herself. She had prided herself in not falling in love. For keeping a safe distance between her and the few guys she had dated. Watching Spencer sleep now, she felt that distance evaporating. Yes, she was scared, but for the first time she was starting to think that maybe it was worth the risk.

Did Spencer feel the same? Ethan had thought Spencer did. Was he right? Did she want to risk their friendship?

There were so many questions but there was one thing that Amber knew for sure. Right now was not the time. Spencer needed time to adjust to the major change in his life that had taken place today. For now, she just needed to be the friend that he needed and nothing more.

* * *

Amber stood in the doorway of the big common room at Bennington Sanitarium. Diana Reid had been there for the past three days and Amber had finally convinced Spencer to come visit her. Convinced him that it was something he needed to do for both him and his mother before he headed back to Caltech.

Over the last few days, she had helped him go through the stuff at his home. They had brought Diana Reid's personal items - clothes, photo albums, jewelry and some of her books to the hospital. Despite that, Reid hadn't had any contact with her. They had also packed up and got rid of the other stuff in the house. With his mother in Bennington and him in Los Angeles, Spencer didn't see any reason to keep the house. Some of the stuff he was taking with him to Los Angeles. Other stuff he was putting into storage, and other things he was giving away. A lot of the furniture and household items had been donated to help out a family that had recently suffered a fire in their home. Mrs. Henderson would take care of selling the house and then the money from that sale would be put toward the bills for Bennington. For now, Spencer would stay with Mrs. Henderson when he came home to Vegas.

Spencer had been planning on leaving Vegas without seeing his mother. He had convinced himself that she wouldn't want to see him. That she wouldn't have forgiven him for what he had done to her. Amber knew she couldn't let him leave without Spencer going to see Diana Reid. She had finally convinced him of that and had come with him to Bennington. She had hung back when Spencer had gone into the room though, feeling that mother and son needed some time alone right then. As she watched the emotional reunion from a distance, she knew she was right.

Amber had lost track of how long she had been standing there, when Spencer finally broke away from his mother and headed back in her direction.

"Are you okay?" Amber asked as he approached her.

Spencer nodded. "Thanks for making me come," he told her.

Amber let a small smile come to her face as she nodded in acceptance of the words.

"She wants to talk to you," Spencer said, nodding his head in the direction where Diana was sitting in a chair. "She noticed you standing here."

Amber nodded, and started slowly in that direction. She had met Diana Reid a few times at the house before she had been committed to Bennington. As she approached her, she wondered what the woman wanted to see her for.

"Mrs. Reid," Amber said, as she sat down in a chair across from the woman.

"Hi Amber. It's good of you to support Spencer through all of this. I appreciate that. This hasn't been easy on him."

"Just being a good friend."

"Good. He needs people like you in his life. He's a good boy," Diana Reid said. There was a slight pause before she spoke again. "He cares about you, you know. He doesn't let just anyone get close but you're special. Even I can see that. You care about him too. That's why you're here."

Amber opened her mouth to say something but couldn't think of what she could possibly say to her friend's mother. She hadn't anticipated the conversation going this way.

"I need you to do something for me. I know you're both still young and who knows where your lives will take you, but I need a promise from you."

"What is it?" Amber asked, hesitant to agree to anything without hearing what it was first.

"Don't let Spencer drown in the guilt. This isn't his fault. I don't blame him but I know he blames himself. A mother just knows things like that. Whatever happens between the two of you, I need you to do that for me."

"I'll try my best."

"That's all I can ask," Diana Reid said, with a nod of her head and a sad smile on her face.

* * *

*Stats in this paragraph taken from .. Yes I know the year is off but it was the closest I could find.


	13. Settling In

_**2007- Washington D.C. Area:**_

It was the last day of November. Amber had settled into a routine, though she was still living at her father's place. That was going to change soon though. Agent Rossi had signed the papers for the townhouse that Morgan had renovated yesterday. Amber wasn't planning on losing any time on moving into it, as she was going to spend her weekend getting settled in.

Station Washington was quite a change from Kodiak, but she was making the adjustments. She was adapting to her new role in the Coast Guard and was enjoying it. Her new co-workers had been very accepting and helpful in helping her learn the ropes. Her new commanding officer, Lt. Commander Jason Hines was just as supportive as Commander Harris had been. The commanding officer of Station Washington left it up to the men and women serving under him to decide if they wanted to carry their service weapons off base, which was a relief to Amber as she had gotten in the habit of carrying the weapon while serving in Alaska.

Serving in the nation's capital was quite a different experience than what she had been exposed to so far in her career with the Coast Guard. There wasn't the same urgency here as there had been serving in Sitka and then Kodiak. She didn't find herself daily facing life and death situations and even she had noticed the difference in her mood. If there had been any doubt about Commander Harris and the psychologist's evaluation of her back in Kodiak, it was gone now. This move had been in her best interest and though she missed being a rescue swimmer at some level she still took pride in going to work everyday.

After the past week though, she was glad to have the entire weekend off. A weekend that she wouldn't have to worry about being called in to perform a rescue. Time to relax. Now if only Spencer didn't get called away, the weekend would be perfect. Between their jobs, finding time together was already proving difficult. She had only seen her father slightly more often. They had however been able to spend Thanksgiving together at her father's and they had joined Morgan for dinner one night. She had enjoyed spending time with the other agent and it didn't take long to see just how good of friends he and Reid were.

As Amber walked into her father's house, Mudgie came to greet her. She rubbed the dog's head a little before removing her jacket. She was heading for the steps when her father came out of his study.

"Hi, Sweetie," David Rossi said in greeting. "Got plans for tonight?"

"Just a little packing to finish. Why?"

"Thought maybe you'd like to go out to eat with your old man."

"Sounds like fun. Just let me shower and change," Amber replied.

Amber did just that and it wasn't long before David Rossi was driving the two of them back into D.C. The two ate dinner in a nice restaurant. Afterwards, they walked the streets enjoying each other's company, David Rossi patiently following his daughter into the stores she ducked into every so often. An hour and a half later, Agent Rossi was carrying two bags with items that Amber decided she 'had to have' for her new home in one hand, his daughter's arm looped through his own, on the other side.

They were headed back to the car when Agent Rossi noticed three familiar faces walking toward them. His three female teammates were talking and didn't notice him at first. When they finally did, he noticed the curious look that Prentiss wore, as she looked from him to Amber at his side. Given the reputation he knew he had at the BAU, letting Prentiss and Garcia speculate as to who Amber was, would probably not be a good thing. Even though JJ would probably put two and two together fairly fast, Rossi had the feeling the blonde wouldn't mind letting her friends come up with some ideas of their own before filling them in.

"Good evening, ladies," Rossi said in greeting as they all stopped to greet each other. "I'd like to introduce you to my daughter, Amber. Amber these would be the three members of the team that you haven't met yet - Emily, JJ and the one with the. . ." Rossi paused, taking a step closer to Garcia to examine exactly what it was she was wearing in her hair tonight. The blonde tech had wove green garland in her hair, and attached to the garland at even intervals were little reindeer. "The reindeer in her hair, is Penelope."

"Isn't it cute! JJ actually found the garland for me."

"I was thinking more as an office decoration. I didn't expect her to put it in her hair," JJ said.

"I like it," Amber commented. "Very festive."

"I like her already," Garcia commented. "She obviously doesn't get her taste from you, Sir," she added, glancing at Agent Rossi. "No offense."

"None taken," Rossi replied an amused smile on his face.

"Where were you two headed?" JJ asked.

"Back home actually," Agent Rossi answered.

"We were going to get coffee at the little café up the street," JJ said. "Would the two of you care to join us? It would give us a chance to get to know each other."

"I think I'll pass. Too much estrogen for my taste," Rossi replied.

"Feeling out numbered, Rossi?" Emily asked in a taunting voice.

"Quite honestly, yes," he told her. "If you want to join them, I'll pick you up later."

"How about it, Amber?" Emily said. "Maybe you can give us some blackmail on your father?"

"Sure. Why not?" Amber said, looking forward to getting to know the rest of the team she had heard so much about from both her father and Spencer.

"I'll give you a ride home afterwards. Wouldn't want to keep 'Dad' up too late," Emily offered. She turned to her teammate. "What time should I have her home by?"

"I'm not walking into that one," Rossi replied. Turning to Amber he gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you later, have fun."

"Bye, Dad," Amber told him.

As Agent Rossi continued in the direction of his car, the four girls continued toward the coffee shop. Being a Friday night, the place was crowded but the girls managed to find an empty table in one corner of the café. They placed their orders and started talking, the three FBI agents asking Amber a lot of questions, while fielding her questions at the same time.

"I'm surprised you weren't spending the evening with, Spence," JJ commented, casually as the conversation hit a momentary lull.

Prentiss and Garcia both looked at Amber curiously. They hadn't realized that Amber even knew Reid and why would JJ expect the two of them to have plans? Not seeing the confused look of the other two women, Amber looked at JJ and replied.

"We plan on being together most of tomorrow and Sunday. Spencer is going to help me get settled in at my own place this weekend. I do believe there is such a thing as too much of a good thing and we've been a part for so long, well I just don't want to rush things."

"So you and Reid are an item?" Emily asked, trying to satisfy her curiosity.

"You mean he hasn't mentioned anything to you guys?" Amber asked, not sure whether to feel guilty for giving away something Spencer seemed to be keeping quiet or mad at him for not telling his teammates.

Emily shook her head no and glanced across the table at JJ. "Mother Hen obviously knew though."

"I figured he would have said something to the two of you by now," JJ said, feigning innocence. She knew Reid had no intention on telling his last two teammates until he absolutely had to and had made the decision she was going to help along the process.

"So, my junior g-man has got himself a girlfriend," Garcia commented, a sly smile on her face. "Oh I can't wait until he finds out I know."

"Now, Garcia don't go giving Spence a hard time," JJ said.

"I won't. I do however, plan on having a little fun with him," Garcia said. "Just like you all have had when it comes to Kevin Lynch."

"How is Kevin these days?" Emily asked.

"Fine."

"Has he asked you out yet?" JJ asked.

"No. Not yet. I am confident he will though. He's just waiting for me to completely recover," Garcia said, secretly wondering if that was the reason or if maybe Kevin wasn't that interested in her after all.

"I'm sure you're right," JJ said diplomatically. "So you're moving into your own place tomorrow? Do you need any more help. I don't have any plans."

"Me either," Emily volunteered.

"Any help I can get would be appreciated. Dad's giving me the bedroom furniture from the room at his place that I've been staying in but I bought a new couch, table and chairs, refrigerator and washer and dry, all of which are suppose to be delivered at some point tomorrow so I need to be there to accept the delivery. Hotch and Morgan have both offered to help me and Reid but somehow there seems to be quite of few things that have gathered at my Dad's place since I came East." Amber commented thinking of the stack of boxes at her Dad's. Some had been shipped from Alaska and other things she had shipped from mother's house when she had been down there. Stuff she had stored there when she moved to Alaska.

"I could hang around and wait for the delivery guys if you want," Garcia offered. "There isn't much else I could do to help out at this point," she added, as she was still recovering from being shot.

"I'd appreciate that. I can make sure nothing gets left behind then," Amber said.

"Well, then if we're going to become a moving company tomorrow maybe we should call it a night," JJ suggested. "What time should we show up?"

"Is nine o'clock too early?"

JJ and Garcia said they would be at Agent Rossi's at nine the next morning. After getting directions to the older profiler's house they said good-bye to Emily and Amber they headed in the direction of the nearest subway station. Emily and Amber headed to where Prentiss had parked her car. While they walked Emily asked Amber about how she and Reid had met.

"Just put that over there," Amber said to the guys who were delivering the couch, pointing to where she wanted the piece of furniture placed in the living room of the town house she was moving into.

The couch was the last piece of furniture that needed to be delivered as the rest of the stuff had already shown up. Most of her stuff had also been moved from her Dad's place and the boxes were spread throughout the houses. While JJ, Hotch and her father had gone back to the house for the rest of it, Amber had stayed back on this trip to start unpacking. David Rossi had mysteriously taken Garcia and Prentiss aside and sent them off to do something for him.

As the two men placed the sofa in the living room, Amber heard a thud from up above her. Morgan and Spencer were up there putting together the bed her father had insisted she take from the room she had been staying in at his house. They had disassembled and moved it here that morning, and Amber found herself wondering if everything was okay up there.

Though she had told her dad that the women had agreed to help, she hadn't bothered to mention it to Spencer. The surprised look on his face when the three female members of the BAU team had shown up that morning had been worth it. Already grateful for Spencer and her father's co-worker's offer to help her move, she had been surprised when they had all shown up this morning with a house warming gift, especially the three women. The three of them had obviously done one more errand the previous night before they had headed home. Amber lost track of how many times she had thanked them all for their gifts.

As the two delivery men left the house, Amber headed upstairs to check on things. She heard the two men arguing even before she reached the top of the steps. Reaching the master bedroom of the house, she found Morgan and Spencer arguing over where to start on the assembly. The head board of the bed was lying on the floor in front of the foot board which was leaning against the wall. Amber had a feeling the head board falling had been the thud she had heard.

Amber leaned against the door jam of the bedroom, and watched the two of them. It was a couple of minutes before Spencer noticed her standing there. Seeing his friend's diverted attention, Morgan fell silent and followed Reid's gaze.

"Could you hear us downstairs?" Reid asked.

"No, just from the steps. I came up to see what the thud was."

"The headboard fell over," Reid replied, gesturing to the piece of furniture lying of the floor.

"I gathered that," Amber replied. "Am I going to have to put this thing together myself?" she asked.

"No. We've got it. Einstein here just thinks he knows more than me, despite the fact that I remodeled this place," Morgan replied. "It'll be done before you know it."

"All I suggested was that we organize everything before we start putting the bed together so we're not looking for things as we go along," Reid said, looking at Morgan and not Amber. "If you don't want my help, I'm sure I can find some other way to be useful," he added, stepping over the bed railings as he started toward the doorway Amber was standing in.

Morgan reached out and grabbed his wrist.

"Hey, Kid, don't be that way. It'll be easier with two of us," Morgan told him. "You want to organize things before we start, fine we'll organize stuff."

Amber laughed. It was nice to see that Spencer had found a place where he was accepted. She knew he felt at times like he didn't fit in, but it hadn't taken long for Amber to see just how much he did fit in with his co-workers. The members of his team were an eclectic bunch, but they made it work. It reminded her a lot of her the group she had hung out with back when she was at Caltech.

"I'll leave the two of you to your organizing," Amber said, turning and heading back downstairs. She was half way down the steps when she heard a vehicle pull into the driveway. Reaching the front door she opened it, to see that her Dad and Hotch had arrived, with the rest of the things from her father's house.

"We managed to get everything packed into the two vehicles," Agent Rossi told his daughter as she walked toward him. Hotch had parked his SUV along the road, and both he and JJ climbed from it as Rossi continued speaking. "We should have you settled in by the end of the day, just like I promised."

"I really appreciate all of your help," Amber said, addressing not only her father but Hotch and JJ, who had joined them.

"It's our pleasure," JJ replied with a smile.

"Shall we start unpacking?" he said, closing the door and heading to the back of the vehicle. The four of them grabbed boxes and started taking things inside.

"There you go," Spencer said, stepping back from the wall after hanging the third picture on the living room wall. He and Amber were alone in the house now, the rest of the team having taken their leave about a half hour ago. There were still a few things to unpack, but for the most part the group had managed to get things unpacked and put away.

Amber looked at the three pictures that were now hanging on the wall as Spencer headed for the couch. The pictures had been the special errand that her father had sent Prentiss and Garcia on that day. One was a picture of her with her parents when she was three, which was taken in Commack, Long Island, before her parents had divorced. It was probably one of the few pictures still in existence with all three of them in it. The second picture was one of her and Spencer that Maria had taken when they were dating at Caltech. It had been one she had sent to her father, and David Rossi had managed to find it and had a 5X7 print made up of it. The third was from her college graduation, and was of the friends she had spent those four years with - Mark, Maria, Vanessa, Chelsea, and Vince. Maria and Vince were the only two she stayed in contact with anymore, but the picture was a nice reminder of those days.

"They definitely make the house feel a little more homelike," Amber commented, turning from the wall to look at Spencer who was sitting on the couch, his long legs stretched out in front of him.

"Your team is a great bunch of people. I really appreciated all their help today," Amber continued as she walked over to the couch. She slipped out of the sneakers she was wearing without untying them and sat down on the couch. Curling her feet up underneath her, she snuggled close to Spencer her head resting against his chest. Spencer draped one arm around her shoulders and held her close.

"Yeah, they are a great bunch. I know I drive them crazy sometimes, but I know they'll always be there for me no matter what," Spencer replied.

"Even my Dad?" Amber asked.

"Professionally, yes. When it comes to our personal life, let's just say I'm still not sure."

"So, why hadn't you told Emily and Garcia about us?" Amber asked.

"No particular reason. It just hadn't come up," Spencer replied. One look at Amber told him that he wasn't convincing her. "And I guess I was trying to avoid the teasing I know is going to take place now that they know," he admitted. "I was going to introduce you to them eventually."

"I kind of enjoyed how it worked out anyway. The look on your face when the two of them showed up this morning was priceless," Amber said.

"I'm surprised you didn't have your camera ready."

"If it hadn't been packed, I would have," Amber told him. She shifted her head so that she could look up at him. "It feels right to be this close to you again."

Spencer didn't reply. Though he felt the same way she did, he just couldn't seem to find his voice. Instead of trying to stumble through the words, he lowered his head toward hers, finally pressing his lips against Amber's. Though they had spent time together over the last couple of weeks, this was the first real kiss they had shared since before they broke up. Somehow, Spencer didn't think that the kiss on the cheek in front of her father really counted. Nor could he believe that he felt as nervous as he had the first time he had kissed her.

They only broke away when both of them needed air. Amber shifted her head so it was in a more comfortable position but stayed cuddled up next to Spencer. Trying not to disturb Amber, Spencer kicked his shoes off with his feet, not planning on going anywhere for awhile.

"Still mismatching your socks, I see," Amber commented, seeing in the one black sock and one argyle sock that adorned Spencer's feet.

"I've never seen any reason to change," Spencer told her.

"I thought you didn't believe in superstitions?" Amber commented.

"I don't. A superstition is defined as being a belief or notion, not based on reason or knowledge, in or of the ominous significance of a particular thing, circumstance, occurrence, proceeding, or the like or any blindly accepted belief or notion. I don't believe that nothing would go right in my day if one morning I decided to put on a matching pair of socks, I just choose not to. It's our deep seated need to conform to societal needs that compels people to do certain things, such as having to match a pair of socks, and wearing mismatching socks is my way of saying that I refuse to give in to that conformity."

"Don't ever change, Spencer," Amber said, laughing at his little speech.

"I'm not sure I could even if I tried," Spencer replied, confused as to what he had said that Amber found so amusing but not wanting to ask. "Do you miss Alaska?"

"You know, not as much as I thought I would. I mean I miss my co-workers there and my friends, but in other ways its good to be here. It's nice to be near my father. To have a variety of places to go and things to do. Alaska is like a whole different world and though I can't say I hated it, I'm realizing how much I was missing while I was there. As for the change of job, it's a relief really."

"I thought you liked being a rescue swimmer?"

"I did. It was what I wanted to do when I decided on the Coast Guard over the Marines. People telling me I couldn't do it, just made me more determined to make it. However, it takes its toll on you, not being able to save everyone, but then I don't need to tell you that. Knowing that you're just going to be pulling a body out of the ocean in order to give a family a chance to say a proper good-bye. Or searching for hours and not being able to find even the body. Something inside me was saying I couldn't do this anymore, though I either couldn't recognize it or didn't want to admit it. Or maybe I just didn't want to admit defeat? Whatever the reasoning, I can see now that I needed a break from it."

Spencer did understand what she ways saying. Had felt similar feelings himself when they lost another victim while they were searching for the UnSub. They couldn't save everyone, and how many times had he had people tell him to concentrate on the people they could save? It helped, but they wouldn't be human if those they couldn't save didn't effect them in some way.

"Would you go back to it?" Spencer asked, wondering if he was going to get Amber back in his life just to lose her again. He knew he could never ask her to give up her dream. To stop doing what she loved to do. The question he needed to find an answer for was if he was willing to give up his career to follow her. Not so long ago he was questioning whether he could continue to do this job, and at the time he hadn't thought he could. Despite the nightmares he had some nights. Despite what he had gone through with Hankle, he knew this job was what he wanted to be doing. He couldn't walk away from it. Couldn't walk away from the people he worked with. At the time though, he hadn't thought that he would ever have Amber back in his life in this capacity. Could he walk away from all of this for her?

He thought of Morgan's words. About crossing that bridge when he got there. He wasn't sure if this was a question that could wait that long but it was one that didn't need to be answered tonight.

"I don't know, maybe. This transfer is giving me a chance to reevaluate what I want in life. The one thing I'm sure of right now is that for now, I want to enjoy being with you. Enjoy what life holds for me at this place and time. " Amber looked up at Spencer again. "Are you okay with that? Okay with not having any sure answers right now?"

Spencer nodded. "I've got some of the same questions myself. Let's just enjoy what we have right now and take the time to really figure out what we want as we go along."

"Sounds like a plan to me," she told him.

The two sat there in silence for awhile. With her head resting against his chest, Amber could hear the sound of Spencer's heart beating. It was a relaxing sound to listen to.

Spencer looked down at the woman in his arms. Was this the one? Was this his one chance at love?

They had been happy at one time. Breaking up had been hard for both of them. Could they find that happiness again? So much had changed. He wasn't the same person he had been back then. Amber wouldn't be the same person. Were those changes too much for them to overcome? Would she still want to be with him when she had found out about his recent struggles? He knew that wasn't something he could hide from her now. When they had just been keeping in touch by a phone call here and there it was different. The drug addiction that in some ways he was battling even now, wasn't something that he was proud of. He hadn't even admitted it outright to most of his teammates, though besides Rossi, he knew most of them suspected it. Now, he knew Amber needed to know, even though he feared that she might just turn his back on him here and now. Would she leave or would she stand by him as Morgan had done? There was only one way to find out. One way to see if they even had a chance at a future together.

"Amber, there is something I need to tell you," Spencer said softly, finally breaking the silence that had fallen between them.

"What is it?" Amber asked, concerned at the fear she heard in his voice.

"I'm not exactly sure how to tell you. Where I should start?" he told her. "Maybe I should have brought this up earlier as you might want nothing to do with me after you find out," he said, his voice trembling as he said the words.

Amber looked up at him. Though he wasn't looking down at her, she could see the fear in his eyes. She felt fear herself, as she wondered what could make him think she would want nothing to do with him.

"Spencer, there is nothing you could tell me that would make me turn my back on you," she told him, part of her bracing herself to hear that he was seeing signs of his mother's illness in himself. She knew that had always been a fear of his. Knew there was always a chance. Amber had come to the decision years ago, that if it came to that, she would stand by his side, knowing he would need her, even just as a friend, all the more.

Reid looked down at her, reading the emotions in her eyes. Wanting to believe the words, but still bracing himself for the absolute worse.

"I've been dealing with drug addiction recently. An addiction to Dilaudid specifically. I got clean, and have been trying to stay that way. Trying to not give in to the hunger for the drug, but it's . . . " his voice broke and Amber could see tears glistening in his eyes. "It's still hard sometimes and I hate myself for wanting it."

Amber moved to sit up. Spencer removed the arm that had been draped around her, expecting her to get up. For her next words to be for him to leave the house. Instead of standing up though, Amber shifted her position and settled herself in a sitting position next him. She reached out and took his hand in hers.

"What happened?" Amber asked, knowing that it had to be something terrible for Reid to turn to a drug as an escape.

The simple question surprised him, but after getting over the initial surprised, he found that he did want to tell her. To share with her the ordeal he had gone through down in Georgia. It wasn't that he wanted her sympathy, but he wanted her to know. Needed to not have that secret lying in between them.

"There was a case down in Georgia awhile back," Spencer said, starting from the beginning and feeling a weight begin to lift as he continued his confession.


	14. End of Denial

1_**Los Angeles - May 2000:**_

The school year was rapidly coming to an end. Instead of heading back to Texas for the summer break, Amber had decided she was going to stay in LA and work as a lifeguard. She was enjoying the job and with no classes and the increased crowds on the beach, could work enough hours to easily be able to put some money into her savings account.

Surprisingly, her mother hadn't said too much about the idea. Other than making Amber promise she would at least find time to come home for a few days at some point over the summer, she hadn't said anything about Amber staying in LA. As for her father, while he hadn't tried talking her out of it, he had insisted on coming out and helping her find an apartment.

"We really appreciate you helping us out with the apartment hunting, Mr. Rossi," Maria said from the back seat, as David Rossi drove toward the first address on the list of places they were planning to check out. Though she was going home to Texas for the summer, Amber and Maria planned on living off campus for the following school year, so she was tagging along on the apartment hunt.

"Speak for yourself," Amber muttered under her breath.

Beside her, David Rossi didn't catch his daughter's remark. Instead he replied to Maria's comment.

"It's not a problem. I'll teach you girls what kind of things to look out for when you're looking at places to rent and it'll come in handy in the future. Not to mention, people see a couple of college kids apartment hunting and they're going to try to get away with just about anything."

Amber didn't comment. She knew her father was only trying to look out for her. At the same time though, she felt he was interfering. She was perfectly capable of finding an apartment to live in by herself. Her twentieth birthday was coming up in September and she was old enough to look out for herself. Had been doing a pretty good job of it the past year.

"Lesson number one," David Rossi was saying to his two passengers, "is to never settle on the first place you check out. If it's a definite out then thank them for their time and leave. If you like the place, tell them that you'll get back to them. You always want to be able to check out several different places and compare them. Make sure you're getting the best deal. If they try pressuring you that they need a decision right then and there, then be suspicious."

"I do need to be at work by one this afternoon," Amber said, starting to wonder just how long her father was planning on dragging this out.

"No problem," David Rossi replied, as he stopped at a red light. He glanced over at his daughter. "Everything okay, Sweetie."

"Yeah, Dad. Just fine," Amber said, forcing a smile.

David Rossi nodded as he shifted his gaze back to the traffic light. When it turned green he stepped on the accelerator and continued on his way to the address of the first apartment building.

An hour and a half later, and six addresses later, they were headed back to the second apartment building they had looked at. Both Maria and Amber had liked the apartment. Even Amber's father had commented that the apartment they were shown and the building itself looked to be well maintained. The lady, Ms. Caroll, who ran the building had patiently answered every question that David Rossi had thrown at her. Insisting that they at least needed to check out a couple more places before making a final decision, he had told Ms. Caroll that they would get back in touch with her after they looked at their other options. Amber had thought the lady had seemed almost relieved to see him leave.

~_Wonder what she's going to think seeing us come back_,~ Amber thought as she climbed from the passenger seat of her father's car.

The three of them made their way into the apartment building, and headed straight for Ms. Caroll's office. If the landlady was surprised or not happy to see them, she hid it well. Seeing the two girls standing in the doorway with David Rossi, Ms. Caroll gestured for them to enter the room. Amber and Maria let Dave take the lead, and a half hour later the papers were signed. Ms. Carroll told the girls that the apartment was ready for them whenever they were ready to move in.

After taking the girls out for a quick lunch, David Rossi dropped the two girls off at their dormitory.

"Thanks for your help today, Mr. Rossi," Maria said as she climbed from the car.

"You're welcome," Rossi replied. "I'm just glad that I know you two girls are living in a decent apartment."

Amber said good-bye to her father, without making any comment about the apartment or his help with the search. She wished him a safe flight home and then headed into the dorm to get ready for work.

_**Los Angeles - August 2000:**_

It was two o'clock in the morning when Amber pulled her truck into the parking spot outside her apartment building. Reaching over, she gave her friend's shoulder a slight shake.

"Hey, Maria, we're home," Amber said. How her friend had managed to fall asleep on the ride to their apartment from the airport, Amber didn't know. Especially as she had slept the entire flight from Texas too.

Amber had taken a week off from work and gone back to Texas to visit her mother and step-father. As school would be starting soon, Maria had decided to come back with her. Mark was still back in their hometown, hanging out with old friends who had gone to other colleges. Though Amber had enjoyed seeing the familiar faces, she was more than happy for the visit to end so she could come home to LA.

~_I wonder when I started considering LA home_,~ Amber wondered, as she pulled the residential parking placard out of the middle console and hung it on her rearview mirror, as Maria undid her seatbelt.

She knew she had never really considered Texas as home, in the sense that most people used the word. Sure, it was where she told people she was from if they asked as, she was so young when her mother had left Commack with her, that her memories of there were vague. However, Texas was simply where her mother lived, just as Virginia was where her father lived.

During the fall semester last year, her English teacher had asked them during the first class period to take ten minutes and write down what the word 'home' meant to them. After writing - home is, on the paper, Amber had spent ten minutes staring at it. She couldn't think of anything to write and was glad the assignment wasn't a graded one. When the professor had asked for people to share their thoughts, Amber had listened to her classmates definition of home and realized she had never felt that way about anywhere she had lived.

The two girls climbed from the truck and moved to the bed of the truck. Reaching over the side, Amber pulled her one bag out, and put its strap over one shoulder. Having been in Texas most of the summer, Maria had more luggage with her. Amber snagged the handle of the one suitcase and then headed toward the building, Maria carrying her laptop bag and the other two bags she had with her.

With her free hand, Amber un-clipped her cell phone from its holder. It wasn't long before she had found the number she had wanted in her contacts list, and pushed the button to place the call.

"Who are you calling at this time of the morning?" Maria asked, as the approached the front entrance of the building.

"Spencer," Amber replied. "He told me to call when I got in."

"When are the two of you going to stop playing at this friend thing, and just admit that you like one another?" Maria asked.

Amber ignored her friend's question as Spencer's voice came over the phone. Wedging the phone between her head and shoulder, Amber pulled open the door to the apartment building and held it for Maria, before following her inside. By the time they had reached the elevator, Amber had finished the short conversation with Spencer. Instead of hanging up the phone though, she held it out to Maria.

"Ethan wants to say, hi," she told her. Like Maria and herself, Ethan and Spencer had found an apartment near campus.

Maria placed the bags she was carrying on the ground and took the phone from Amber. As she talked to the boyfriend she hadn't seen since the ending of the previous school year, Amber hit the up button of the elevator. By the time the elevator doors had opened, Maria had ended the short conversation with Ethan. She handed the phone back to Amber and picked up her bags.

"So what did you need to check with me about?" Amber asked as the two girls stepped onto the elevator, having caught Maria's side of the conversation.

"How late you're working tomorrow evening. Ethan invited us to join him at the Jazz Club for dinner before his performance. He said he could probably convince Spencer to come if you're free.

"I work until four," Amber told her.

"Great. So how does dinner and some Jazz music sound?" Maria commented.

"Fine, but I thought you didn't like Jazz?"

"I don't but I do like Ethan. Kind of like how I hate football but go to Mark's games or how Spencer had no interest in swimming meets until he met you," she added with a wink.

"Spencer and I are just friends," Amber replied, even though she had accepted the fact that she cared about the genius more than as just a friend. Still, she didn't know how to bring up the subject with Spencer to find out if he felt the same way about her, nor was she sure she wanted to. Did she really want to take a chance of losing him in her life forever? If it was one thing she had learned from her parents it was that making a relationship work was darn near impossible.

"Whatever you say," Maria said as the elevator came to a stop. The doors opened and the girls stepped out.

"Dinner and music sound good tomorrow though," Amber replied, as she lead the way down the hallway to their apartment.

"So what is Spencer going to be up to this fall, anyway?" Maria asked.

"He's going for a doctorate in Engineering," Amber replied.

"That'll be what, his third doctorate?" Maria asked. Amber nodded as she found the key to the apartment on her key ring. "Man, I'll just be happy if I ever get through getting my Bachelor's degree."

"You and me both," Amber replied, as she pushed open the door to the apartment.

_**Los Angeles, October - 2000:**_

Checking to make sure everything was out of the pockets, Spencer Reid untied the apron and removed it. He had reached the end of his shift at the Sun and Surf Café and was more than happy to call it a day. After staying up all night to make sure the project that had been due today was perfect, and then having classes up until he came to work, he was exhausted. He didn't even care that no one had done anything special for his birthday. At least Ethan, Amber and most of his co-workers had remembered what day it was and had wished him a Happy Birthday.

Reid headed for his locker to retrieve his bag when his supervisor caught up to him.

"Oh, good, I caught you before you left," Jake said. Spencer hoped Jake wasn't going to ask him to stay later, as he really wanted to go home tonight. "Those people that were at table twelve came back and said they wanted to talk to their waiter. Not sure what it was about but could you go see if you can smooth whatever the issue was over."

Spencer sighed but nodded his agreement. Table twelve had been his last table of the night, and though he couldn't remember anything going wrong, he'd prefer to talk to the customers himself than for them to go to the manager.

Leaving his bag where it was, Spencer followed Jake out of he back room. He followed Jake as the supervisor headed toward the register at the counter. Spencer didn't see anyone standing around in that area, and wondered what was going on. Realization hit him a few moments later when he saw familiar faces sitting at a couple of tables that were pushed together not far from them.

Ethan, Amber, Maria, Vince and Chelsea were all sitting there, a cake with lit candles on the table.

"Happy Birthday," they all called out when they knew Spencer had spotted them.

Spencer felt his cheeks grow warm as he realized people in the café were now looking in their direction. He was extremely grateful that the café wasn't crowded.

"Have fun," Jake told him, clapping him briefly on the shoulder as he headed back toward the back room. Spencer knew then that his supervisor had been in on the surprise.

"Well, blow out the candles before the wax starts to get on the cake," Ethan instructed his friend, gesturing to the cake.

Spencer finished closing the distance to the table and taking a deep breath, blew out the candles on the cake. Suddenly he wasn't feeling all that tired anymore.

"Have a seat," Amber told him, indicating the empty chair between her and Maria. "You can open your gifts while Vince serves the cake."

"Why me?" Vince asked.

"Because you're the closest one to the plates," Amber told him, indicating the stack of plates that had been provided by Jake.

Not able to find any way to argue the point, Vince picked up the knife and started cutting the cake. One of the waitresses still on duty, came by with the drinks that everyone had ordered and asked Spencer what he wanted as he sat down next to Amber.

"Here, open mine first," Ethan said, pushing one of the packages toward Spencer.

"Yeah, and be careful opening Vince's gift," Chelsea said. "You never know what might pop out at you."

"Hey, you always told me that you liked snakes," Vince said defensively.

"I do, but I don't like rubber snakes jumping out at me when I open a box," Chelsea retorted.

Meanwhile, Spencer had opened the small package Ethan had given him. Opening the box, he found two tickets to the Los Angeles Philharmonic concert for the following Friday.

"Thanks Ethan," Spencer said.

"You're welcome. See I do listen to you," Ethan said, as Spencer had talked about wanting to see a live performance of the LA Philharmonic on several occasions. "I already informed Jake that you need the evening off, and I figured you could ask a certain brunette to accompany with you as I know she likes that kind of music too," he added, with a wink at Amber.

Spencer felt his cheeks growing warm again. All eyes at the table were on him though, so to end the awkward moment, he glanced over at Amber. "Would you like to come to the concert with me?"

"Sure. It sounds like fun," Amber replied, as she saw Ethan and Maria share a knowing look. Amber knew the two of them had been in on the scheme together and what they were hoping would happen during this little outing. Amber found her gift among the ones still on the table and handed it to him. "Here open this one next," Amber told him.

Not looking around the table at the others gathered, Spencer took the package from her and started opening it.

* * *

"How long do you plan on ignoring me?" Ethan asked later that night, as he followed Spencer into their apartment.

"I'm not ignoring you," Spencer replied. "I've answered every question you've asked me," he told his friend as he walked across the living room toward his bedroom.

"And yet, that is the longest string of words you've put together since we left the café," Ethan replied, as he watched his friend walk across the room. Ethan pushed the door shut behind him. "Spencer, I get it. I put you on the spot and you're mad. Fine. Let's just deal with it though instead of you ignoring it and trying to bury it, just like you do every other emotion that you don't want to deal with."

Spencer paused before reaching for the door knob of his bedroom. "I don't bury my emotions."

"Yes, you do," Ethan said not backing down. "And I do get it, Spencer. It's a coping mechanism. You haven't had it easy. You just turned nineteen and you've had to deal with more than a lot of people twice your age have had to. By closing yourself off though, you're going to miss out on a whole lot of experiences. As your friend, I can't just stand-by and watch you do that."

"You put me on the spot back there," Spencer said, finally turning around. To Ethan, his friend's tone sounded hurt more than angry. "What if she had said no? It wasn't only Amber I would have witness that rejection but her friends too. I never would have been able to face them again."

"She wasn't going to tell you no."

"How do you know that?"

"I'm dating her best friend remember. Maria knows Amber as well as I know you. She knew what I was going to do and we knew Amber would agree to go to the concert with you because she likes you, but like you, she's scared to admit it. The only two people who aren't aware of the mutual attraction between you two, are the two of you."

Spencer didn't reply. He was tired of trying to deny that he liked Amber, especially when he had come to accept the fact that he did like her as more of a friend. At the same time, he didn't want to risk losing her friendship. Didn't want to lose her support.

Ethan, however, wasn't done with the conversation.

"Now maybe the two of you end up going to the concert and still keep pretending you're just friends or maybe you'll both come to your senses. Whatever the outcome, I had to give it a try and if you want to be mad at me for that, then so be it."

Spencer held Ethan's gaze for a moment. He wasn't really sure what he was feeling right now. Was he really mad or just embarrassed? Was Ethan right? Did he have a chance with Amber? Even if he did, what gave Ethan a right to set him up like that?

"I'll see you in the morning," Spencer told his friend, before turning and heading into his bedroom.

* * *

"That was very enjoyable. The orchestra played beautifully," Amber commented, as she and Spencer walked out of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion the following Friday evening. "Thank-you for bringing me."

"You're welcome," Spencer replied. "I'm sorry about the dress. I'll pay to have it fix or replace it if it can't be fixed," he told her, the dress having gotten ripped when he had accidently shut the skirt of it in the car door when he had picked Amber up.

"I told you not to worry about that," Amber told him, restraining herself from looking down at the damage done to the skirt. It was one of her favorite dresses but the tear was minor and as the skirt was full length, Amber was hoping it could be repaired. Even if it couldn't be, Amber refused to let Spencer feel guilty about it. It wasn't as if he had done it on purpose and it was partly her fault anyway. She should have made sure the dress was clear of the door but she hadn't been thinking about it. Spencer was the first guy she had gone out with that had even bothered to open the car door for her.

Amber reached out and slipped her hand into his. The evening had been enjoyable though awkward at times. As the cool breeze of the October night, blew across her bare neck, as she had pulled her hair up in a bun for the concert, Amber realized that she wasn't quite ready to call it a night.

"Do you mind if we take a walk before you take me home? It's such a beautiful night," Amber asked.

"Are you going to be okay walking in those shoes?" Spencer asked, glancing down at Amber's feet.

"I'll be fine," Amber told him. She had worn a pair of her dress sandals tonight with no heels, which were quite comfortable.

Spencer nodded. Instead of heading back to the car, which Spencer had borrowed from Ethan for the night, the two headed in the opposite direction. After walking in silence for a little while, Amber started up a conversation. She knew once she got him talking that the conversation would smooth slowly, the trick was getting him to open up.

The two of them lost time as they were chatting and waking. Eventually they found themselves at Pershing Square. It had been awhile since Amber had been to the public park. Thinking back she tried to remember when it was and decided it must have been in January when she had gone ice skating with her friends.

They were at the end of the square with the fountain. The city lights danced on the surface of the water as they walked toward the fountain. Letting go of Spencer's hand, Amber reached up and pulled the light shawl she wore over the sleeveless gown, closer around herself.

"Are you cold?" Spencer asked.

"It's a little cool. I'll be okay though," Amber said, not ready to head back to the car, knowing that would only bring the end of the evening that much closer.

Beside her, Spencer took off the jacket of his tuxedo and slipped it over Amber's shoulders.

"Thanks," Amber told him as she reached up to pull the jacket close around her. She became aware that instead of drawing away, Spencer had left one arm draped across her shoulders. It surprised her, as this was the first time that he had ever initiated any kind of physical contact.

Amber turned her head in Spencer's direction. Even in the dim light she could make out the expression on his face. She could see the hesitation and fear there. Feelings that she was feeling too. Like herself though, she could also see something else there. Was it love? Amber wasn't sure but she did know that she liked the feel of his arm around her.

Not breaking the silence between them, both of them leaned in toward each other until their lips met. For Spencer, it was the first time he had ever kissed a girl, and all he could think of was if he was doing it right. As Amber didn't pull away from him, he figured he was doing okay. As for Amber, it was the realization of something she had hoped would happen for the last month or so. Sure she had been trying to deny to Maria, Vince and her other friends that she liked Spencer as more than a friend but she had long ago tried convincing herself of that.

Yes, she had kissed boys before, but this time was different. This kiss had an electricity in it that the other kisses had never had. This kiss wiped away all her rules about not getting too close to a boy. About guarding herself against the heartache the love always seemed to bring. She didn't care about that right now. Right then, all she cared about was that the guy she had fallen for was kissing her.


	15. Hard Conversations

_**2007 -The day after the episode "True Night":**_

Agent Spencer Reid walked onto the floor at the BAU well before it was time for him to be there. A glance at the offices told him that both Hotch and JJ had beaten him there today, much like they usually did. Walking into the bullpen, he lifted the strap of his messenger bag over his head, placed the bag under his desk and then headed for the blonde media liaison's office. Reaching it, Reid knocked tentatively on the open door.

At the sound, JJ looked up from the case file she was already looking at. "Hey, morning Spence," she greeted, a smile coming to her face.

"Morning," Reid replied, as he took a step into the office. "Do you have a minute?"

"Of course," JJ said, closing the file and gesturing to the empty chair across the desk from her. "Have a seat."

Reid took a few more steps into the office and then closed the door to the office. Slowly, still trying to figure out how to voice the request he wanted to make, the FBI agent approached the empty chair. Sitting down, he looked over the top of the stacks of files on the desk to see his friend, leaning back in her chair, looking at him expectantly.

"I need to ask a favor of you," Reid told her, looking at the top file on one of the piles as he said the words.

"Okay," JJ said slowly. "What's the favor?"

"Well, it's just that I've been doing a lot of thinking about how things are with me and Amber. About how choices in someone's life can take them in different directions or bring them back together. We got a second chance and after all the time that passed, it almost seems like no time at all has passed when I'm with her. I feel at ease with her. Like I don't have to hide anything from her because no matter what I've done, she'll understand. She won't walk away."

"I think someone is in love," JJ commented, smiling as she watched the color rise in Reid's face. The flushing was all the indication she needed that she was right.

"I don't think I have any idea what that word means beyond the scientific definition."

"Oh, I think you do. You're just scared to admit it to yourself," JJ told him. Reid shifted in the chair and started looking around the office, except for in JJ's direction. "So what's the favor you wanted?" JJ asked, not wanting to embarrass the young genius any more.

"Well, I guess this last case got me thinking about how we really don't have control over what happens. I mean look at Jonny McHale and Vicky. They thought things were perfect and then one night changed everything." Reid paused, and after taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, he continued. "I want to propose to Amber but I need a ring and I don't think I'd be able to pick out an appropriate one by myself," Reid said, in a voice so low that JJ just barely caught what he said.

"You're going to propose?" JJ asked, sitting up straighter in her chair, as she spoke. She wasn't sure what she had been expecting when Reid had walked into her office but this definitely wasn't it.

"You don't think I should?" Reid asked, finally looking in JJ's direction.

"No. I never said that. It's just that I wasn't expecting to hear that," JJ told him, getting over her surprise. "I think its sweet."

"Will you help me?"

"Of course. Do you have any idea what ring size she wears?"

Reid shook his head.

"No problem," JJ said, leaning back in her chair again. "A little detective work, and I'll figure it out," she told him. At Reid's questioning look she smiled. "Trust me."

Reid nodded. He had gotten through the easy conversation. Asking for JJ's help in picking out a ring for Amber was nothing compared to the next to conversations he had to work up the courage for. First there was a conversation with Rossi. The older profiler had seemed to be okay with everything so far. Things at work hadn't been any more awkward than usual. If anything, Reid thought that Rossi may have warmed up to him a little. Either that, or maybe he was just getting more settled with the team. Whatever the case, at least Rossi wasn't sending looks at him as though he were trying to figure out if Reid was for real. Still, asking the man for his daughter's hand in marriage was something quite different than spouting off statistics or quoting from books. The thought of not bothering was quite appealing, though Reid had quickly dismissed it.

Though Reid still planned to ask Amber to marry him if his conversation with the elder Rossi didn't go well, Reid knew he had to at least make the attempt. Amber was Rossi's only daughter and it didn't take a genius to see that she was his world. He'd do anything for his daughter and Reid knew that he and Amber would be much happier with the gentleman's blessing on their union.

Assuming he survived that conversation, then he had to actually get up the nerve to ask Amber to marry him. He hadn't a clue how to even begin that conversation. He knew a lot of people took their potential fiances out to a nice restaurant or made some other public display of it. He knew that was out. He'd never be able to ask her in front of an audience. He'd need to create the right mood somewhere private.

"And hope she doesn't say no."

"Amber isn't going to say no," JJ told him, making Reid realize that he had said that last bit out loud.

"How do you know?" Reid asked her.

"From the way she looks at you," JJ said with a smile. "You two are so right for each other and its about time that both of you wake up and realize it. Garcia, Prentiss and I were starting to think we might have to give you a little push in the right direction."

"You three have been talking about me?"

"We're women. We're suckers for a good love story, though there are still quite a few holes in this one. Just how did you and Amber meet anyway?"

Reid got to his feet.

"I'm not going to tell you, just so the three of you can talk about it over the water cooler."

"No problem," JJ said with a shrug. "I'll just ask Amber tonight. She's joining us for girl's night."

"Just great," Reid said softly as he started for the door. The first time he had met Amber wasn't exactly one of his better moments, though given the time he had taken JJ to the Redskins game, one that JJ could relate to. It wasn't exactly something he wanted his teammates to know about as he could already hear the jokes they would get in at his expense. Not that the beginning of their first official date had gone any better, though he had been relieved when Amber had been able to get the dress he had managed to shut in the car door repaired.

"Where are you going, Spence?"

"I've got files waiting for me in my inbox," he told her. "I'll talk to you later."

"Okay. As soon as I figure out the ring size, we'll go shopping."

"Great. Thanks," Reid replied, giving he a slight wave as he walked out the office door and right into the path of Agent David Rossi who was just arriving. "Oh, sorry, sir," Reid managed, as they both stopped abruptly and managed to avoid running into one another. Reid could feel the heat rising in his cheeks.

"Not a problem," Rossi replied, giving the younger agent a quizzical look as he stepped around him and continued to his own office.

Reid made his way to his desk in the bullpen, relieved that his other two co-workers had yet to arrive. Sinking down into his chair, Reid pulled the stack of files that needed to be worked on toward him. At least this was something he understood.

* * *

"I want to pop in here a minute, girls" Garcia said, as they approached a small jewelry store, on their way to the café they were planning to eat at.

JJ breathed a sigh of relief. Garcia had just unknowingly helped her out. She had decided the best way to find out what size ring Amber would need was to have her try on rings. JJ had been trying to figure out how to get the four of them inside a jewelry store without things looking too suspicious. ~_Thank-you, Garcia_,~ JJ thought, as they followed the blonde tech into the store.

"Looking for the ring you want Kevin to give you eventually?" Prentiss asked, lightly as she walked through the front door.

"Very funny. We are so nowhere near that stage of our relationship. However, it is nearing Christmas and I thought I might give you and JJ some hints as to what you could get me," Garcia replied.

"Who says we're going to get you anything," JJ teased.

"Oh, come on girls. It's not like any of us have men in our lives to buy us jewelry, well with the exception of Amber. We've got to take care of each other," Garcia told them, as she started looking at the jewelry displayed in the nearest case.

"I'm not expecting jewelry from Spencer this Christmas," Amber commented as she looked into a case near-by, with JJ hovering nearby, looking over her shoulder. "The only time I ever got jewelry as a gift from him was for Christmas my senior year of college and we had been dating for two years at the time. I think he's too shy to be seen in a jewelry store."

"Oh, don't worry Sweetie, I know how to handle that," Garcia replied. "I'll take Boy Genius out Christmas shopping myself if I have to."

"Now that's a pretty ring," JJ commented, seeing an emerald ring sitting in the case. She looked around the store for an employee. Seeing a young lady she waved her over, as Prentiss joined them.

"Can I help you?" the store clerk asked as she approached.

"I'd like to try that ring on," JJ said, pointing to the emerald ring she had seen. She really did like it, although she knew it was probably out of her price range and it wasn't as if she and Will were serious enough for her to expect a gift like that from him. Not to mention, no one even knew the two of them were dating yet.

The store clerk nodded and taking out a set of keys, opened the case. She removed the ring and placed the box on the counter so JJ could try it on. Meanwhile, Garcia had joined them and asked to see another ring. After trying the emerald ring on, having noted the size, JJ told Amber to try it on. The brunette shook her head.

"Oh, come on. Have a little fun," JJ said.

"Besides, we need to know what you like and what looks good on you so we can help Reid with his Christmas shopping," Garica added, as she held the hand with the ring she had tried on out to admire it.

Reluctantly, Amber tried on the ring, as well as several others that the girls insisted she try. It didn't take long for JJ to figure out what size ring fit perfectly on Amber's left ring finger, and she made a mental note of it. She also observed that Amber tended to like the rings that had the smaller stones in them, rather than large stones, which she made a mental note of in order to help Spencer pick out a ring for her.

It was a half hour later before the girls walked out of the store, Prentiss with a small bag tucked in her purse, as she had bought a pendant for her mother for Christmas. The four women continued to the café they had been heading to before their side trip. They were quickly shown to a table and it didn't take long for them to decide on what they wanted to eat. As the waitress left to place their orders, JJ turned to Amber.

"Okay, so I'm curious. Just how did you and Spencer meet? He wouldn't tell me, which only makes me more curious," JJ said.

"Yeah, I'm not surprised that he wouldn't mention it. It wasn't exactly one of his finer moments," Amber replied, smiling as she thought about the first time Spencer had waited on her and her friends at the Sun and Surf Café.

"What did he do, spill something on you?" Prentiss asked, half jokingly, as she had seen the coordination issues her co-worker had at times.

"Actually, yes," Amber replied. "And he took quite a bit of teasing about it from my friends at the time."

"Yeah, going out with Spencer means you should probably bring a change of clothes," JJ commented, thinking of her 'date' with Spencer to the Red Skins game.

"Yeah, well I was lucky that more of the soda ended up on the table and the floor than on me. I heard you pretty much ended up with the whole soda on you," Amber commented, having heard the story from Spencer about the game.

Both Garcia and Prentiss looked on with interest. Details about the Red Skins 'date' had been virtually non-existent in the BAU, not that the team members hadn't tried to get details. JJ wasn't surprised that Reid wouldn't mention it and she had decided to keep quiet to spare him the teasing from their teammates.

"Yeah, though I've had worse spilt on me. Though, seeing as you seem to know my experience now you have got to tell me about yours," JJ said, trying to deflect attention off her 'date' with Spencer.

"You guys promise not to tease him about it if I tell you?" Amber asked, looking around at JJ, Prentiss and Garcia.

"Not a word," Prentiss said.

"My lips are sealed," JJ replied.

"I leave the teasing to Morgan," Garcia replied with a grin. "And I promise not to breathe a word of this to him either," she added.

"Okay, then," Amber said, and began the story about the first time she had met Spencer Reid.

* * *

Reid parked his car behind Rossi's SUV, which told him that his co-worker was indeed home. Getting out of his vehicle, he was well aware of how old the thing looked. Behind the fairly new SUV parked in front of it, his car looked even older. Reid looked from the vehicles to the house, feeling even more aware of the differences between Rossi and himself.

Who was he kidding? He had nothing he could offer Amber. She definitely didn't need him to take care of her as she was more than capable of taking care of herself. She had proven that hadn't she.

Yet, she was the one that had called him. Amber had told him she was interested and the one thing that Reid was sure about in this whole situation was that he didn't want to lose her again. He had made that mistake once before.

Gathering his courage, Reid started heading toward the front porch of the house. The house kept looking bigger and bigger as he walked toward it. Somehow, it hadn't seemed so big when he been over here to visit Amber while she had been living with her father.

Reaching the bottom step, Reid paused again. Perhaps he should have just done this at the office. He turned and looked back at his car, wondering if he could just get back inside it and drive away. Had Rossi realized he was out here yet?

The sound of the front door opening made Reid look from the car back to the house. Through the screen door, he saw Agent Rossi standing there. Rossi opened the screen door and stepped onto the porch.

"Are you going to come inside or keep lurking out here?" Rossi asked.

"Well, you see there was something I wanted to talk to you about."

"I gathered that much," Rossi replied, a half smile coming to his face. He even had a feeling he knew why the younger FBI agent was here and if he was right, was pleasantly surprised. He hadn't expected the kid to get up enough nerve to even get this far. He wasn't about to let him off easy though.

"Could we talk inside?"

Rossi nodded and opened the screen door again. Holding it open, he motioned Reid inside. Hesitantly, Reid walked past Rossi and stepped into the house. He took about five steps into the house and then stopped, turning to watch Rossi step into the house, pushing the front door shut behind him. Reid jumped slightly at the sound of the front door shutting, which reminded him of a cell door shutting. The movement was not lost on Rossi.

"Where's Mudgie?" Reid asked, nervously looking around.

Rossi smiled again. "Oh, he's around here somewhere," he said, waving a hand in dismissive manner, even though he knew exactly where his black Labrador was. As soon as he had noticed Reid's car in the drive, Rossi had shut the dog in his study, knowing that for some reason Mudgie didn't like him. It was a fact that the older profiler found strange because Mudgie liked everybody. He made a great hunting dog but as far as guard dogs went, the black Lab was useless. If someone did try to break into the house, Mudgie would probably greet the intruder like an old friend. Not that it mattered, as he didn't need a guard dog with the security system that he had put in.

"Why don't you have a seat in the living room," Rossi told Reid. "I'll be right with you."

"Um, yes sir," Reid replied, heading in the direction of the living room.

Rossi headed toward the kitchen. He really had nothing that needed to be done but he wanted to make the kid sweat a little. Reaching the doorway of the kitchen, Rossi paused before going into it. Glancing back the way he had come, he could see that Reid was no longer in sight. Rossi stood there, outside of the kitchen, for a few minutes.

David Rossi was sure that his co-worker was going to ask him for his daughter's hand in marriage. There was absolutely no other reason that would bring Reid out to his house after work hours. The younger man, after several attempts to talk to him about his work when Rossi had first returned, had been avoiding him even while they were at work. Even more so recently.

Rossi had already decided not to stand in the way of Amber's relationship with Reid. He didn't see any reason to. Though a bit hard to take at time, Spencer Reid was a good man and Rossi knew he would take care of his daughter to the best of his ability. Not to mention, the two were happy together. That fact was easy to see. He knew that trying to stand in their way would only accomplish creating a riff between him and his daughter. Though he was quite sure Amber would look for his blessing and support in this decision, she wasn't going to give in if he told her not to go through with it. Just like she hadn't given in to her mother about joining the Coast Guard. Amber had grown into a self-sufficient, independent woman and he was proud of that fact. At least he had managed to do something right along the way.

That didn't mean he didn't worry about what the two of them were facing. He had his own failed marriages and Hotch's current marital issues as evidence that their future together was going to be anything but easy. One of them was going to eventually have to give up their career in order for them to stay together. David Rossi wondered if that was something either one of them had considered yet.

Deciding he had made Reid squirm enough, David Rossi made his way in the direction of the living room. Walking into the room he found Reid standing near the fireplace, looking at the pictures on the mantle above it. Walking quietly across the room, Rossi came to a stop behind the younger man. Reid was looking at a photograph of Amber posing with Wendy before Amber's eighth grade dinner dance. Though Wendy had walked out on him, he would be forever grateful for the love and caring she had shown her stepdaughter during the years Amber had lived with them. Of his three marriages, the one with Wendy probably had the least amount of hard feelings associated with it. Not to mention, Wendy was the only one that had not asked for alimony when they had divorced, determined to make it on her own. The two of them had remained in touch, mostly because of Wendy's connection to Amber, and though not required to by the court, he had helped her out financially a couple of times over the years when she had hit a rough spot. It had never been a lack of love between the two of them that had drove them apart. Wendy simply hadn't been able to deal with his long hours at work. She had wanted a husband who came home every night and that was something he couldn't provide her.

"My third wife, Wendy, and Amber," Rossi said, causing Reid to jump at the sound of his voice. "The two of them were quite close. Even though she walked out on me, I owe Wendy for all she did for my daughter during a very hard time. Last I knew, Amber had stayed in touch with her."

Reid nodded, knowing exactly what Rossi was referring to. Amber had told him about the time she had spent living on the east coast with her father and Wendy. Had confided to him the reason for it. Reid had even met Wendy once, when Amber's former step-mother had come out to LA for a visit while they were in college. Reid wasn't sure that Rossi would want to know those details, and even if he did, Reid didn't think he would be able to give voice to it as he suddenly found his mouth very dry.

"Why don't we sit down?" Rossi suggested, gesturing to the couch and arm chairs that were positioned in the middle of the room.

With another nod, Reid moved away from the fireplace and toward the couch. He sat down on the end cushion, sitting on the edge. He rested his forearms on the top of his legs, looking down at the coffee table in front of him. As Rossi took a seat in the near-by armchair, Reid thought over what he should say. Suddenly, his planned speech just didn't seem appropriate.

Rossi watched the young man sitting on the couch, as he leaned casually back in the armchair, settling one ankle on the opposite knee. From the den, Mudgie barked causing Reid to jump slightly as he looked around the room. Rossi smiled, wondering if he should leave the kid off the hook about the dog.

"He's in my study," Rossi said.

Reid jumped at the sound of Rossi's voice.

~_Man he's jumpy_,~ Rossi thought, as Reid looked at him. _~Maybe I should ease up on him a little._~

"What?" Reid asked, as if Rossi's words hadn't registered.

"Mudgie. I shut him in my den when I saw your car in the driveway."

"Oh," Reid managed, though he didn't seem to relax at all. His eyes wandered around the room.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" Rossi asked casually, trying to keep the smile off of his face.

"Well, um, sir, I was wondering . . . well I don't want you to think we're rushing things. Amber and I did date for a few years back in college. I know we haven't been back together long, sir, but well I know she's the one," Reid said, stumbling over the words. Inside he cringed at how much of a bumbling idiot he sounded. "I know that I don't want her walking out of my life again, sir. So, I was wondering . . . I wanted to ask you for permission to ask your daughter to marry me, sir?"

"Okay," Rossi said slowly. "So are you going to ask?"

Rossi watched what little color there was in Reid's face drain from it at the comment. That was definitely not the answer the kid had been expecting. Rossi was about to let Reid off the hook when Reid spoke again.

"Sir, I'd like your permission to ask your daughter to marry me," Reid said quickly, just trying to get the words out fast before he gave into the strong urge he was feeling to just flee the house.

Rossi nodded thoughtfully. He felt sure that his young co-worker must be in love with his daughter to have actually gone through with what he had just done. However, the older profiler wasn't about to just give his blessing to the union without asking a few questions. No one knew better than him how hard it was to make a marriage work, and how much certain jobs could make that task even harder. In this case it wasn't just one of them involved in one of those jobs, but both of them. It wasn't that he didn't think these two couldn't make it work but he wanted to be sure they were thinking of things like that before they got too involved with each other.

"What happens if another transfer comes in for, Amber? Or what if you end up getting transferred elsewhere? Have the two of you even discussed that? A marriage proposal means that going your separate ways won't be quite as simple as the last time."

"We haven't really discussed it," Reid admitted, still not looking at Rossi. "I don't think it's something that can be planned for as we won't know what our options are. I can tell you one thing though, it doesn't really matter. I've thought a lot about this, and if it comes down to it, I'll walk away from my job to keep Amber in my life. I'm not letting her walk away again."

Rossi was listening to more than just the words that Reid was saying. He was listening to the tone of the words and trying to judge the intent behind them. Was the young man just saying what he thought he wanted him to hear or did he really mean what he was saying? Rossi couldn't hear anything but sincerity in Reid's voice. It really did sound like Reid meant what he was saying.

"Well, the two of you definitely have a hard road ahead of you," Rossi said. "I know from experience. However, its not my place to stand in your way of making a go of it. If you want to ask my daughter for her hand in marriage, you both have my blessing."

Reid finally looked up at the older man. "Th-thank-you, sir," he managed to get out, but didn't know what else to say or do. Did he leave now? Should he try to engage Rossi in a conversation on another subject? He hadn't thought much beyond asking Rossi for permission to marry Amber and even then he hadn't expected it to go the way it had. Reid realized he had actually been expecting Rossi to tell him he wouldn't bless the union.

"So, seeing as you want to marry my little girl, perhaps the two of us should take a little time to get to know one another a little better," Rossi said, taking the pressure off of Reid to continue the conversation. Rossi knew it was going to fall on him to keep the conversation going, but with any luck, Reid might be a little bit more at ease around him than he currently was.


	16. First End Point

_**Las Vegas - December 28**__**th**__**, 2000:**_

Amber sat in a chair in the reception area of the Bennington Sanitarium. This wasn't the first time, as she had been here with Spencer a couple of times since he had committed his mother. Though he wrote to her every day, Amber found that it took a little coaxing to get Spencer to come see his mother in person. Coaxing in the way of actually driving him to Vegas and then coming to the hospital with him. Though she always went in to see Mrs. Reid herself, Amber insisted that Spencer go in by himself for a little while first.

This trip to see Mrs. Reid was the reason that Amber was back out west instead of still in Virginia with her father. She had gone back east to spend the holiday break with her father. She hadn't planned on coming back to LA until after New Years. Of course that had been the plan when she had thought Spencer was going to go to Vegas and visit with his mother for Christmas.

Spencer had made it to Vegas. He had gone back with Ethan, both of them staying with Ethan's parents. However, the young genius had never quite gotten around to going to the hospital to see his mother. When Ethan had pushed the subject on Christmas Eve, Spencer had ended up getting a bus ticket and heading back to LA. Ethan had called her that evening.

Amber hadn't gotten a hold of Spencer until Christmas. After talking to him on the phone for about an hour she had told him she would fly out on the first available flight the following day. Amber could still hear her father's remarks when she had told him her new plans.

"_He must be something special to have you running across country to be with him."_

"_Spencer's going through a rough time now, Dad. He needs me."_

"_Did he ask you to come?"_

"_No," she had told him, with a shake of her head. "Spencer wouldn't ask me to leave my family to be with him, but he shouldn't be alone right now."_

_Amber's father had just smiled at that point. She could still see the knowing look he had worn as he had said his next words. "That's when you know a relationship is something special. Remember that, Sweetie." He had then kissed the top of her head before calling the airport to find her a flight back to LA._

For the first time, Amber realized how special her father was. No, he hadn't always been there when she was growing up. His job had come first in a lot of ways and yet, when it really mattered, he had always been there for her. Had always supported her. Where her mother had always lectured and tried to make Amber do what she had thought best for her, talks with her father had always been different. Sure he had taught her what was right and wrong. Had given her advice and tried to influence her to make the right decision, but somehow always made it seem like it was her choice. Even when she did decide to do something he thought was wrong, he had let her do it, and then been there to comfort her when it didn't work.

Amber heard footsteps. Looking up she saw Spencer walking toward her. Amber got to her feet and took the hand that Spencer held out for her as he approached. Without a word, the two of them turned and headed back to the sitting room that Mrs. Reid was waiting for them in.

"I told her that we're dating," Spencer said.

"How did she take it?"

"She seems happy about it. Wanted to know what took us so long," he replied, with a smile.

Amber laughed and felt a lot less nervous about this visit.

_**Los Angeles - April 2001:**_

"Here, take a picture of me," Amber told Spencer, as she pushed the camera toward him, after taking a few pictures of the waves crashing on the rocks of the jetty. The day was beautiful, and after enjoying a picnic lunch on the beach, and then a few games of chess, they had spent some time walking on the beach, Amber taking pictures with the new digital camera that Spencer had bought her for Christmas.

Spencer took the camera from her as Amber climbed up on the rocks of the jetty. He snapped a couple of different shots, before Amber came down from the jetty to stand beside him. Shading the screen from the sun, the two of them reviewed the pictures that had been taken.

"I like that one," Amber said, as she switched back to the second shot that Spencer had taken. "Think I'll make a 5X7 print of it and send it to my dad," she said as she switched the camera back to the picture taking mode. "Get up there so I can take a few of you," she added, waving toward the jetty.

"I don't know. I'm more likely to end up falling in somehow."

"Then I'll rescue you. I am a lifeguard, remember."

Without another word of protest, Spencer awkwardly climbed up on the rocks and found a place to sit. After Amber had taken a few pictures, he started climbing down, and somehow ended up sitting in the sand.

"Are you all right?" Amber asked, as she walked over to help him up.

"Yeah. I'm fine," he told her, even as he took a hold of the helping hand that she offered. "I sure hope you didn't get that on camera," he commented as she got to his feet.

"If I did, I sure wouldn't let you know. Wouldn't want you to go destroying perfectly good blackmail pictures," Amber told him, the smile on her face matching her teasing tone.

Spencer smiled. "I think I've had enough of the beach for today. Want to head back to my place. I'll cook us dinner."

"Okay," Amber said, placing the lens cap on her camera. The two headed back in the direction of where Amber had parked her truck, and were soon walking hand in hand. "Ethan is away, isn't he?"

"Yeah, he went upstate for a jazz competition,"Spencer replied. "He's staying up there tonight and driving home in the morning. He seemed upset when he left this morning."

"He and Maria had a fight over her not going. She didn't want to stay up there overnight and when she suggested that she drive herself up for the competition, she said he got upset," Amber replied. Maria had actually told her more, but Amber didn't feel it was her place to elaborate on the situation anymore. Especially not when Spencer was Ethan's best friend.

Spencer nodded and changed the subject as they continued back to the parking lot. After a quick stop at a drug store on the way to Spencer's apartment, they walked into the empty apartment. As he headed for the kitchen, Spencer went to place the bag on the counter as he walked by. Instead of staying there, the bag slipped off the side and fell to the floor, a box of condoms falling out. Spencer quickly scooped it back up but not before Amber had noticed what it was.

"Feeling lucky tonight seeing as your roommate isn't home?"Amber asked easily.

"What? No! I mean I didn't ask you over tonight because Ethan's away. I'm not even expecting anything to happen but well, this is really the first real relationship I've really been in and well, I just wanted to be ready when, I mean if the situation should arise," Spencer said, stumbling over the words. He felt his cheeks grow warm and wondered just how red his face was.

Amber could see how uncomfortable Spencer was and it wasn't as if she hadn't thought about taking their relationship the next step. The thought of being intimate with Spencer had crossed her mind before and she was open to it. She was convinced it wouldn't be like the last time. She actually felt relieved that Spencer was thinking along the same lines as her with the progression of their relationship. Was tonight the night? She didn't know, but she did know that there was one thing she had to share with him before they did go that far.

"Spencer, we need to talk," she told him, nodding her head in the direction of the couch.

Spencer nodded, feeling as though he had just messed up their relationship.

When they were both seated on the couch, Amber took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "What I'm about to tell you I've only ever shared with my parents, Wendy, Maria and my therapist," she told him. "I told you that when I was thirteen I moved out east to live with my father for a few years. What I didn't tell you was why."

* * *

Banging on the bedroom door woke Spencer from the peaceful slumber he was in. It wasn't until he felt movement beside him that he realized that Amber still shared the bed with him and that the noise had awaken her too.

"Hey Spencer, you in there, man," came Ethan's voice. "I want to tell you about this cool girl I met last night."

Inwardly cringing, Spencer got up from the bed and quickly pulled a pair of shorts on before heading to the door. Ethan was knocking on the door again.

"Coming," Spencer called out. Reaching the bedroom door, he opened enough to stick his head out.

"Did I wake you up? It's almost noon," Ethan said.

"I had a late night," Spencer replied. "How was the competition?"

"It went well. I came in second, which is okay. The girl I lost to was awesome and not just musically, if you get my drift."

"Ethan, perhaps we should discuss this later," Spencer said, knowing exactly what he meant but also realizing how unfair it was to Amber for her to be overhearing all this.

Ethan looked at him quizzically and then the sound of movement in the room behind Spencer keyed him in on what was going on.

"Way to go, man!" Ethan said, a huge grin on his face. "I'll just go put on some coffee."

"Yeah, thanks," Spencer said, before closing the door. Turning, he saw that Amber had gotten herself dressed while he was talking to Ethan. "Sorry," he told her. "You shouldn't have had to hear that."

"It's not your fault," she said as she pulled her hair back and secured it into a pony tail. "Though you better believe I'm telling Maria what I just heard. I know they had a fight but what he did isn't right."

"I wouldn't expect you not to," Spencer replied, as she walked across the room toward him.

Amber leaned in for a quick kiss. "I'll call you later," she told him. Spencer nodded as he stepped to the side to let her leave the room.

Entering the living room, Amber headed over to the couch where she had left her sandals and purse last night. She slipped her feet into the sandals and picked up her purse.

"Bye, Amber," Ethan called from the kitchen.

"Bye, Ethan," Amber called back, biting her tongue from saying to him what she really wanted to tell him. As mad at him as she was for what he had done to Maria, he was still not only her friend but Spencer's friend to. Avoiding him entirely was not going to be possible and she didn't want to not come over to the apartment simply because Ethan was here. The best thing to do was to keep things civil.

~_I am going to tell Maria not to bother apologizing to him though_, ~ Amber said as she stepped onto the elevator to head down to the ground floor.

_**Los Angeles - Fall 2002:**_

The alarm clock ringing woke Amber out of the peaceful sleep she had fallen into. Forcing her eyes open, she looked over at where Spencer had been sleeping, to find an empty bed. She must have slept through the first alarm that would have told him to get up for work. She hadn't realized she had been that tired. Glancing over at the clock, she saw that she had an hour until her first class.

With a sigh, she threw back the sheet. She had enough time to get ready and get to campus on time, as long as she got up now. She crossed over to the bureau and turned off the alarm clock. She then opened the drawer of the dresser which held her things that had ended up gathering over here, over the past year or so. Maria often joked that Amber should just move in with Spencer because she was over here so much but Amber knew she wasn't ready for that.

Yes, she had been dating Spencer for the last two years. There had been ups and downs over that time. More than one argument. Yet, they had managed to stay together. To work things out. Yet as much as she enjoyed spending time with Spencer, the prospect of living with him scared the hell out of her.

Amber liked the way things were right now. Though she and Spencer spent a lot of time together, she still felt like she had her independence. Being able to go home to her own apartment which she shared with Maria gave her that freedom. Did she love Spencer? She believed that she did. The real question was - was she ready to spend her life with him?

Amber knew she wasn't ready to make that commitment quite yet. She still had her own dreams that she wanted to pursue. Spencer may have helped change her mind on the subject of love in that she believed in it now. However, even now she wasn't sure it was enough to give up her dreams for.

After showering, dressing and grabbing a quick breakfast, Amber left Spencer a quick note. She told him that she was going to stay at her place tonight but that she would call him. Grabbing her backpack and laptop bag, Amber left the apartment and headed down for her pick-up truck.

She walked into her Software Engineering class ten minutes before it was time for class to start. She sat down in a desk near the two of her group members who were already in the room. Immediately the three began talking about their project proposal that was due during their lab time for the class the following day. Professor Charlton walked into the classroom right on time and started the lecture immediately.

The day went smoothly for Amber, and after her last class she headed for her apartment. Maria was already home and pounced on her the moment she walked through the door.

"I'm so glad your home," Maria said, excitedly running to her friend and grabbing Amber's hands, as if her friend had been gone for a long time instead of just overnight.

"Can I at least put myself down and then I'll be happy to hear what has got you so excited," Amber replied, smiling and ready to share in her friend's good news.

"Sorry," Maria said, backing up a few steps to allow her roommate to enter the apartment the whole way.

Amber shut the apartment door, and then headed over to the couch. She swung the laptop bag over the back of the couch, resting it on the cushions. She then took her backpack off her right shoulder and placed it next to the other bag. Turning she found Maria standing right behind her, still visibly bubbling with joy.

"So what has got you so excited?" Amber asked, as she leaned against the back of the couch.

Maria held out her left hand. There on the ring finger was a small, sparkling diamond. "Alex asked me to marry him last night."

Amber squealed with joy, as she enveloped her friend in a hug. "I'm so happy for you," Amber told her, keeping her other thoughts to herself. She couldn't help but wonder if Maria was rushing into the decision. The two had only been dating for the last year and though Alex was a great guy, Amber wasn't sure if jumping into a marriage was the best thing for the two of them. Then again, she was still a bit of a cynic when it came to love, despite her relationship with Spencer. "Do you have any idea when you're going to get married?"

Maria shook her head as she broke away from Amber. "We haven't discussed it too much, though we both definitely want to wait until after graduation in the spring. Of course if Alex makes the NFL draft then we're not going to be able to wait too long after graduation."

Alex was on Caltech's football team with Mark. In fact, it had been through her brother that Maria had met him. Alex was the star receiver of the team for the last two years, and as Caltech was looking at their second championship in as many years, both he and Mark had attracted the pro scouts.

"You'll be my maid of honor, right?" Maria asked.

"Of course!" Amber replied, knowing there was no way she could tell her friend no. "We'll have to start making plans soon. I'll also need to get with Vanessa and Chelsea so we can plan your bachelorette party and then talk to your Mom about a wedding shower."

"I know. My head is swimming with everything I need to get done."

"Well, first things first, you and Alex need to sit down and figure out a date and how many attendants you're going to have. Then you and I can sit down and make a list of everything else that is going to need to be done and the time frame. We'll make lists so we can keep track of everything."

Maria nodded. "Oh, I'm so glad you're so level headed. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Probably be late for things or forget about things altogether," Amber replied. "Now why don't you tell me all about how Alex proposed while I make us something to eat? I'm starving and I have swim practice in an hour."

"Okay," Maria replied. She was already starting the story as she followed Amber toward the kitchen.

_**End of April-2003**_:

Amber put up the no life guard on duty sign, as five o'clock approached. The day had been cloudy and overcast, and not many people had been on the beach. Her four hour shift had seemed to crawl by, and she was glad it was over.

She swept the sand off the tower and placed the broom inside. Then she closed up the life guard tower. She would be back on duty at eight tomorrow morning, but she planned on enjoying her Friday evening. Amber was getting together with Chelsea, Vanessa and a few other friends to put together the final preparations for Maria's bachelorette party on Saturday evening. They had rented the back room at one of the local bars for the event.

The wedding and their graduation was fast approaching. In fact, Maria had decided to have the wedding in Los Angeles the day after graduation. The two had decided to keep the wedding on the small side. Both Maria and Alex's immediate family would be in the area already because of the graduation as would all their friends from college. Another factor the young couple had considered when planning the wedding, was the different directions that everyone would be taking after graduation. It was just easier for everyone if the wedding took place before they scattered and then their wedding party wouldn't need to figure out how to make it to wherever the wedding was held.

The timing couldn't have been better for Amber. She had gotten her report time from the Coast Guard. She would have only a week before she would report to the Coast Guard Academy for Officer Candidate School (OCS). Her mother was not happy, as Amber had anticipated. However, her Dad had told her he was proud of her and wished her the best. Amber couldn't understand why her mother couldn't support her decision like her father could.

Along with her mother's lack of support on her decision was the question mark with her relationship with Spencer Reid. As much as she cared about him, she knew she couldn't give her dreams up for him. That action would only lead to eventual resentment of having given up something that was important to her. For now, Spencer had said he would go wherever her pursuit of her dreams would take her. Come June that meant New London, Connecticut. Yet that arrangement wouldn't last forever. Spencer had his own dreams and though the age requirement for new agents training with the FBI had those dreams on hold for now, eventually it would come time for him to take a chance on those dreams. Amber knew she couldn't ask him to give those dreams up for her as Spencer would only end up resenting her if she did.

Every time she had tried to bring it up, Spencer tried to change the subject. He said there wasn't any reason to try to discuss something that was almost two years in the future, when he would be twenty-three and met the age requirement for the FBI Academy. Still, there was a chance of him getting in earlier as he had applied despite the age requirement asking for special consideration. They hadn't given him a definite answer, though had allowed him to proceed with the qualification process. Amber didn't like putting it off, but as she couldn't find a way to convince Spencer to discuss the situation, she went along.

Amber stepped off the ramp of the tower and onto the sand. Looking toward the parking lot she saw a familiar walking toward her. Even from this distance she could recognize the familiar lanky figure, with his hands shoved into his pocket. The lifeguard can gripped loosely in her left hand, Amber walked across the sand to meet Spencer.

"Hey, this is a nice surprise. I wasn't expecting you to stop by," Amber said as they stopped not far from one another.

"I know you're busy tonight but I really needed to talk to you," Spencer told her, hands still in his pocket and looking over her shoulder at the ocean behind her. There was a look of sadness on his face, and Amber knew immediately that she wasn't going to like the direction this conversation was about to go in.

"What is it?" Amber asked.

Spencer removed his right hand from his pocket. In his hand was a folded up envelope, which he held out to Amber.

Amber took the proffered envelope and slowly unfolded it. She took note of the return address and realized the envelope was from the FBI. Curious, she took out the piece of paper inside, and unfolding it, began to scan it. "You're in," Amber said realizing that it was a letter of acceptance for the FBI Academy.

"They've officially decided to waive the age requirement," Spencer told her.

"When?"

"Their next session. I leave in two weeks."

"Before my graduation," Amber commented, as she put the letter back in the envelope, stating the obvious. It was a disappointment but not a complete surprise. It may have been coming sooner than she expected, but she knew this moment had been inevitable.

"I'm sorry," Spencer said, as he took the envelope back.

"It's not your fault," Amber told him, forcing a smile. "Congratulations. I know this is what you wanted and I know you'll do well." She was trying to stay upbeat for Spencer's sake. She was happy for him. This was a realization of his dream. Like she was excited to have made it to the Coast Guard, she knew Spencer felt the same way about this. Unfortunately, this also meant the end of what they had shared these last couple of years.

She had taken a chance, and despite her feelings on love, allowed herself to pursue this relationship with Spencer. It was hard enough when they were in the same city. She knew she wasn't capable of trying to deal with a long distance relationship, no matter how much she cared about Spencer.

"I only made it through the qualification process because you helped me train to pass the Physical Fitness Test. Thank-you for that."

"It's what I would do for anyone I cared about," Amber said, with a slight shrug of her shoulders. "So I guess we can't put this conversation off any longer."

"We could try to make it work," Spencer said, a hint of desperation in his voice.

Amber was shaking her head. "I just can't see me in a long distance relationship. We're both going to busy with our training and then who knows we're we'll be posted after that. There is no telling when we would see each other next time, Spencer. I just can't deal with that kind of unknown in a relationship."

"Then you're saying this is it?" he asked, knowing the answer but not quite able to accept it. He shifted his gaze from the ocean to the sand between their feet.

"I'm sorry, Spencer. It's not you, it's me. After seeing what my parents have gone through with their marriages . . . I can't take that risk."

"We're not your parents. There's a chance we could make this work."

Amber shook her head, though as he was still looking at the ground, Spencer couldn't see the gesture.

"If we knew we could get stationed near each other following training it might be different, but if I want to be a rescue swimmer, then there is going to be time at an air station I need to put in, followed by A-school and then, if I make it through, I'll be posted to another Air Station. Even if we get a first posting nearby, you won't be able to follow me through those changes. There is just no way."

"I know," Spencer said, easily able to see the logic in her words. "I just don't want this to be good-bye."

"I think I'm starting to understand how my mother felt when she left my father," Amber said, fighting back the tears that were threatening to fall.

"Can we . . . do you think we could still be friends?" Spencer asked, finally looking up, a hopeful expression in his eyes. He was more than willing to keep Amber in his life in whatever capacity that was possible.

Amber nodded, not trusting her voice. She was sure that if she tried to speak, her voice would break from the swirl of emotions that was going on inside of her.

Amber knew she couldn't just walk away from Spencer completely. The two of them had been through some very important moments in their lives over the past couple of years. She had shared with Spencer things that she hadn't even told Maria. Not to mention, she knew how few people that Spencer had in his life. Amber knew she would continue to worry about him. Would want to know that he was okay. To be able to offer her support when he needed it. Staying friends would be hard but not knowing that he was okay would be even worse.

Amber took the few steps necessary to close the distance between them. She dropped the rescue can on the ground and put her arms around Spencer and pulled him into a hug. Without hesitation, Spencer hugged her back. Though neither of them wanted to say good-bye, they also saw that their dreams just wouldn't allow them to be together. Both had known it all along and yet they had both hoped somehow to avoid it.

"If you ever need me for anything, just give me a call," Amber told him, as she took a step back, breaking the embrace. "I mean it, Spencer."

Spencer Reid just nodded, not knowing what to say.

"I've got to get going," Amber said, as she retrieved the rescue can from the ground. "I'll see you around," she added, more as something to say then really meaning it. She wasn't sure she could handle seeing Spencer again before he headed east for the FBI Academy. Saying good-bye this time had been hard enough.

_**Caltech Campus - Graduation:**_

Amber stood in the center of her group of friends following the graduation ceremony. They all still wore their caps and gowns and parents and other family members were busy snapping pictures of them all. Amber was still finding it hard to believe that four years had already gone by. They had all made it and now they were all about to go their separate ways. Sure they all had numbers and email addresses and they probably would stay in touch for a while. Eventually though, Amber knew that some of them would lose track of each other. It was a sad thought but inevitable.

As Vince's father took his picture, the group was about to break up when another voice spoke up.

"Hold on. One more picture please," David Rossi said, as he approached the group.

Amber looked up in surprise. She hadn't been sure if her Dad had made it or not, as the last she had heard was that his flight had been delayed in St. Paul. The call had disappointed her, as her mother had already told her she wouldn't be coming to the graduation. She had claimed she couldn't get the time off of work, but Amber knew it was really because she was still upset about her daughter's career choice.

Amber and her friends regrouped so David Rossi could snap a picture. As soon as he was done, Amber broke away from the group and gave her father a hug.

"I'm so glad you made it!" Amber told him.

"Yeah, well I didn't want to miss my only daughter's graduation," David Rossi replied, hugging her tight. "Got here just as the ceremony began. Congratulations, Sweetie!"

Father and daughter broke away, and David Rossi offered his congratulations to the other graduates. Told Maria and Alex that he was looking forward to their wedding the following day. He chatted amicably with the other parents for a little while. Soon, one by one, members of the group took their leave, going to find other classmates or off to grab dinner with family.

"Do you have plans, or are you up for dinner with the old man?" David Rossi asked his daughter.

"Dinner sounds good. Maria and I were up late last night finishing last minute things for the wedding so we wouldn't have to worry about them tonight."

"Great. Why don't we invite that boy you've been seeing? What was his name, Spencer? I'd like to meet him. Did he come today?"

Amber shook her head. Though when she had left the beach that day not knowing if she could say good-bye to him before he left for the FBI Academy, Amber had ended up driving both him and Ethan to the airport. It had been hard but she was glad they had that second good-bye. Even now though, hearing his name was hard.

"Spencer and I broke up, Dad," Amber told him, feeling tears start to well up in her eyes as she said the words.

"I'm sorry to hear that. What happened?"

"It just wasn't meant to be. We just wanted different things."

"I know what that's like," David Rossi told her, thinking of his own failed marriages. He hoped his daughter wouldn't face the same problems he had with relationships. He wanted her to be happy. To be able to share her life with someone who made her happy. From what she had told him about the guy, and the pictures she had shared, he had thought his daughter had found that.

"You'll find someone special when the time is right. You're still young and have a lot ahead of you," he added.

"I have a feeling I'm going to be quite busy over the next few months and not have time to worry about a relationship. Maybe Mom was right. Maybe the military and love just aren't made to go together."

"Don't think because you chose to serve that you need to give up on a family of your own," David Rossi told her, his voice serious as he spoke. "It may make things harder, but if two people love each other enough, they can make it work. I have friends and co-workers who have done it."

"Can we talk about something else, please?" Amber asked, as the two of them started walking toward the parking lot. She didn't want to discuss the topic of her relationship with Spencer anymore, especially not with her father.

"Of course, Honey," her father said, slipping his hand around her shoulders as they walked, silently hoping that one day his daughter would find the kind of love that he had never been able to.


	17. Second Beginning

AN: Well, here it is, the last chapter. Hope everyone has had as much fun reading this story as I have had writing it. Thanks to everyone who has added this story to their alerts, favs or have left a review (especially my faithful reviewers who have left one for every chapter!) It's been a great ride!

* * *

_**December- 2007:**_

David Rossi walked off the elevator on Monday morning, a stack of papers in his hand. The stack was only half as thick now as it was when he had entered the building, as he had been handing them out ever since he had got out of his car in the parking lot. As Agent Anderson walked by, a folder in his hand, Rossi quickly handed him one of the papers.

"If you have any questions you know where my office is," Rossi told him, as Anderson paused.

"Ah, yes, sir," Anderson managed before he continued on the errand he had been sent on.

Agent Rossi continued on his own way, stepping down into the bullpen. He walked over to the desks of his three teammates. Prentiss, seeing his approach, greeted him.

"Good morning all," he said, looking at first Prentiss, Reid and then Morgan. Rossi handed a flyer to both Morgan and Prentiss.

"What's this?" Prentiss asked.

"Information about the Yuletide Ball that is being held to benefit the Children's Hospital. I'm one of the organizers and I would be mighty disappointed if my own teammates couldn't manage to make an appearance."

"I suppose this is a black-tie event," Morgan said, glancing at the flyer.

"Yes it is, and don't bother using the I don't own a tuxedo excuse," the older profiler told him. "I'll rent you a tuxedo if I have to," Rossi added as he headed out of the bullpen.

"How come you didn't give a flyer to Reid?" Prentiss asked.

Agent Rossi stopped, and turned back to face the three of them. Reid had his head bent over a file that was open. "Because, someone else already invited him," Rossi said.

"Oh, right," Prentiss said, realizing she should have realized that Amber would be attending and would've already invited Reid.

Rossi turned and continued on his way. Walking past his own office, he headed for Hotch's. Rossi knocked on the open door, but didn't pause as he walked into his friend's office.

"The annual Yuletide Ball to benefit the Chrildren's Hosptial?" Hotch asked as Rossi held a flyer out to him.

"You know me too well. I figure one of these years I'll get you to attend, though we do appreciate the donations you've made over the last couple of years."

"Well, I don't have the Christmas Party Haley's parents throw as an excuse this year," Hotch said, as he took the flyer. "Will the excuse of not having a date suffice?"

"Not a chance. I can find you a date in that case," Rossi told him, as he sat down in the chair across from Hotch.

"Ah, no thanks," Hotch replied, thinking of who the older profiler might set him up with just for the fun of it. "I have a feeling you've hit the rest of the team up this year, too."

"Working on it. Still have to drop in on JJ and Garcia. Morgan seemed about as enthusiastic as you."

"Well, I'll at least put in an appearance this year," Hotch told him. It was for a good cause and it wasn't like he had any plans.

"Good, you can keep me from doing anything stupid if Amber and Reid get a little too cozy out on the dance floor or something. She is my little girl, after all."

Hotch smiled. "I'll be surprised if Amber gets Reid out on the dance floor," Hotch said, thinking of how awkward the young genius could be in social situations.

"Oh, you might be surprised. You know how us guys get when we're in love. We'll do things we normally wouldn't even give a second thought to."

"You really think they're that serious?"

Rossi glanced toward the open doorway to make sure no one was nearby, even as he lowered his voice a little. "Reid showed up at my house last week, asking for permission to ask Amber to marry him. I think the boy is head over heels."

"Wow," Hotch said. "I didn't think it was that serious."

"I didn't expect him to actually get up the nerve to talk to me before he asked her, nor did I expect it to come up this fast, but I hope it works out for them. I want to see my little girl happy."

"Has he asked her yet?"

Rossi shook his head. "I'm sure I would have heard something if he had. Besides, if how long it took him to actually enter my house is any indication, it will be a while before he gets around to popping the question."

"That nervous, huh?"

"I'm not sure he would have ever gotten up the nerve to ring the doorbell if I hadn't gone out and got him," Rossi said, to which Hotch laughed.

There was a knock on the door. Both men looked over at the door to see Garcia standing in the doorway.

"I've got that information you wanted, sir," the blonde tech said.

"Great, come on in," Hotch told her. "I appreciate you getting that done quickly."

"You're welcome, sir," Garcia replied, entering the office and handing the file she had brought with her to the unit chief. "Anything else you need?"

"No. Not right now, thank-you."

As the technical analyst turned to leave the room, Rossi spoke up.

"Got any plans for the twenty-first?" he asked.

"Ah, not yet. May I ask why?" Garica said, turning to face the newest member of the team.

"Charity event," Rossi told her, holding out a flyer to her. "A ball to celebrate the holiday and gather toys for the kids at the Children's Hospital."

"Awww, that sounds like a really good cause. I'm sure I can find the time to attend!" Garcia said smiling, as she took the flyer from Rossi.

"Great. Think you can persuade a couple of your co-workers to go. Prentiss and Morgan didn't exactly show much enthusiasm for the idea."

"Oh, I can be very persuasive, sir," Garcia replied. "Just leave things to me."

As Garcia left the office, Rossi looked across the desk at Hotch. "Remind me to never cross that woman," he commented.

"A very wise, choice," Hotch replied.

_**December 22**__**nd**__** around 2:30 in the morning:**_

The Yuletide Ball had been a huge success, raising a record amount of toys for the children. Rossi and his fellow organizers had been pleased with the results and the outcome of the ball itself. Everyone appeared to have a good time, even Rossi's teammates who had been reluctant to come at first.

Following the conclusion of the event, his teammates had surprised him by hanging around and helping with transporting the toys to Rossi's house. The other members of the organization would be by that afternoon to help with the wrapping and organize the delivery of the toys. Prentiss and Garcia had even offered to help with that part if they needed help. After four years of helping to organize the event, Rossi knew better than to turn down any offer of help he received.

Now, the team was gathered in his living room, still dressed in the clothes they had worn to the ball, though all of the guys currently present had discarded the ties and only Hotch still wore the jacket.

"What do you think is taking those two so long?" Prentiss asked, looking toward the doorway of the living room. Amber and Reid had gone to the kitchen to get hot chocolate for everyone.

Rossi glanced at his watch. It did seem to be taking longer than necessary. "Not sure, but somehow I don't think I want to be the one to go find out. Might get accused on spying on them by my daughter."

"I'll go," Morgan offered, getting to his feet and leaving the living room.

He heard the raised voices before he even reached the kitchen. Morgan paused, not sure if he should interrupt or just go quietly back to the living room. He heard Amber's voice but couldn't make out what she was saying. She sounded upset though. What Reid said afterwards he heard though.

"This is pointless. Everything is slipping right out of our hands."

Again Morgan could hear Amber's voice as she made a reply to Reid's statement. Not waiting around to hear more, Morgan turned on his heel and quietly made his way back to the living room.

"That was quick," Prentiss commented as Morgan entered. "Are they coming?"

"Not exactly. The love birds are having an argument. I came back before I overheard too much," Morgan told them, as he reclaimed his spot next to Garcia on the couch.

"Guess we'll be waiting for that hot chocolate then," Prentiss remarked.

"If one of them doesn't end up wearing it," Hotch commented

It wasn't long before the group heard running footsteps go past the room, followed shortly by the slamming of the front door.

"Well, someone was through with arguing," JJ commented, looking around at those in the room with her.

"That would have been Amber," Rossi said. At the questioning looks he received from his co-workers he continued. "Believe me, I've heard her slam enough doors over the years to know exactly what it sounds like," he told them as he got to his feet.

"Planning on going to talk to her?" Prentiss asked, the tone in her voice sounding skeptical, as she didn't think that would be a good idea.

"Of course not," Rossi replied even as he headed for the doorway. "Dear old Dad is the last person that she wants to talk to right about now. I'm going to go give some advice to someone else whether he wants it or not."

As he finished his sentence, Rossi was walking out of the living room. As the older agent disappeared from sight, Morgan moved to get to his feet, not about to let Reid face Rossi by himself.

"Relax, Morgan," Hotch said, seeing the dark-skinned agent's movement.

"Am I the only one who thinks it's a bad idea for Rossi to go talk to Reid alone?" Morgan asked.

"Trust me," Hotch said, thinking of the conversation he had with Rossi a few weeks ago. He wasn't sure how much his other teammates knew about how serious Reid's relationship with Amber was. Hotch did know, he was the only one Rossi had talked to about it. What Reid might have told Morgan or JJ he didn't know, nor was it his concern. He did however know that Rossi wasn't against his daughter's relationship with Reid. If he said he was going to give Reid some advice, then Hotch knew that was what he was going to do.

Reluctantly, Morgan leaned back against the couch again. An awkward silence fell over the group, no one knowing exactly what to say. It wasn't long before Garcia got to her feet.

"Where are you going, Baby Girl?" Morgan asked.

"I'm going to go see if Amber wants another woman to talk to. I can't just sit here and do nothing," Garcia told them as she headed out of the room. As they hadn't heard an engine start up, the blonde figured Amber hadn't gone to far.

"I'll come with you," JJ said, getting to her feet.

The two women grabbed their wraps from the hangers in the entry way. Spotting Amber's coat, JJ grabbed it from its hook before stepping out into the cold night with Garcia.

"It's snowing," Garcia commented as they stepped onto the front porch.

There were big white flakes, slowly drifting to the ground. The snow had been falling long enough to have covered everything with a thin layer of white. Footsteps went down the porch and across the walk toward the driveway. Following them, JJ soon spotted Amber standing by her pick-up truck.

"There she is," JJ said, touching Garcia's arm gently.

The two women pulled their wraps closer around themselves as they made their way carefully down the steps and over to where Amber stood, her back to them. Reaching her, Garcia laid her hand on her new friend's arm.

"Hey, Sweetie, are you okay?"

Amber nodded, and reached up to wipe tears away.

"I brought you your coat. It's freezing out here," JJ said holding the coat open for Amber.

"Thanks," Amber said, as she slipped it on. She then buttoned it up and stuffed her cold hands into its deep pockets.

"Want to talk about it?" Garcia asked.

"What's to talk about? We had a fight. Maybe this just wasn't meant to be."

"Oh, Sweetie, you can't jump to that conclusion over one fight. All couples argue from time to time," Garcia said. When Amber didn't say anything Garcia asked another question. "What was the argument about?"

"It's stupid really," Amber said, taking a hand out of her pocket to wipe away more tears.

"In my experience, most fights are over something stupid," JJ said. "Those are the ones that should be worked through though before they lead to other problems."

"Maybe he's right. Perhaps we are just too different to make a relationship work. I just don't see the harm in dancing a few dances with guys I know when I'm at a ball, especially when he won't dance with me. It's not like I ignored him all night. I spent a good portion of the night with him at our table. You two saw me!"

"So, that's what this was about. Spence, didn't think you spent enough time with him during the ball tonight?" JJ asked.

Amber nodded. "His comment was something along the lines of I might prefer to date Morgan rather than him. I danced one time with Morgan tonight and it was a fast song."

"I never thought my Boy Genius would join the ranks of the insensitive jerks of the world, but I think he just managed it with that comment," Garcia commented, the anger clear in her voice.

"I'm sure Spence didn't mean what he said," JJ said, trying to play diplomat, despite agreeing with Garcia on the insensitivity of the comment. Still, she had a unique perspective on the situation that the other two didn't. "Jealousy can make people say and do some stupid things."

"Doesn't make it hurt any less," Amber replied.

"I know," JJ said, putting her arm around Amber's shoulders.

"Then again, I said some mean things back to him. Things I don't really mean."

"Yeah, we tend to do that when we have an argument," JJ said. "So that just means the two of you need to calm down, apologize and talk things out."

"I told him he was only using tonight as a convenient excuse to want to end the relationship. That he wasn't serious about our relationship," Amber told them, thinking of the words she had thrown out at Spencer after he had said everything was slipping away. "I don't want to break up again, but sometimes I wonder if trying to make a relationship work is worth it. Lord knows my parents could never figure out how to make it work. Why should I be any different?"

"Just because your parents couldn't make a relationship work, doesn't mean you can't," JJ told her. She thought about the ring she had helped Spencer pick out for Amber. She knew for a fact he was serious about their relationship. His problem was getting the courage to show Amber just how serious. She had told Spence that he needed to propose, sooner rather than later. She was starting to wonder if he had waited too long. "What did Spencer say, after you told him that he wasn't serious about the relationship?"

"I didn't give him a chance to say anything," Amber replied. "That's about the time I ran out."

JJ nodded. Even if she had to knock some sense into that boy, she was going to make sure he attempted to fix this. These two were perfect for one another even if they were both scared of a serious relationship on some level. Something that JJ could definitely relate to.

The sound of a door opening made all three women look up. Reid, still clad in his tuxedo, was standing on the front porch.

"Here it comes. He's going to say its over," Amber said.

"Now, Sweetie, you don't know that," Garcia said, giving Amber's arm a squeeze.

"Amber, we need to talk," Spencer called out as he walked across the porch and started down the steps. All three women cringed as Spencer slipped on the third step. To their relief though he steadied himself by grabbing onto the railing.

"Spence, be careful," JJ called out, even as Amber started back in the direction of the house.

Spencer, looking a bit like Bambi, made his way slowly down the walk. JJ and Garcia stayed where they were, wanting to give their two friends some privacy. Spencer hadn't gotten far when he lost his footing and ending up flat on his back. Cursing the pumps she was wearing, Amber hurried toward him.

"Spence, are you okay?" JJ asked, ready to rush to his side if necessary.

"I'm fine," he called out, as he started to get to his feet.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Amber asked, as she reached him, taking his arm to help steady him as he stood up. "Anything hurt?"

"Mostly my pride," Spencer replied, feeling the heat in his cheeks despite the cold wind that blew. "Look, Amber, about what I said earlier, I'm sorry. I know I said it was okay for you to dance with those guys at the ball, and it was. Just because I didn't want to dance shouldn't mean you can't have some fun. It's just that, well when I think about you with them, it makes me realize how easily I could lose you because I'm not the best dresser, or the guy with all the right moves on the dance floor, nor can I whisper sweet words to you because my brain and tongue can't seem to coordinate when it comes to things like that."

Amber stared at him, unsure what to say. That was most definitely the last thing she had expected to hear from Spencer. Did he really think those things mattered to her?

"This relationship means everything to me," he told her.

"Saying it is one thing, Spencer, but I need you to show me that. Show me that I'm not just setting myself up for the heartache that I've seen my parents go through way too many times. I've told myself so many times that I wouldn't set myself up for a disappointment like that. That I wouldn't let myself fall in love with someone and then somewhere along the line, I broke that promise. I went and fell in love with you. Walking away from you that day on the beach, a piece of my heart stayed with you. I can't keep losing pieces of my heart every time we go our separate ways."

"Amber, that won't happen again. I'll never leave you alone."

"What about our careers, Spencer? We haven't ever discussed what happens when a transfer comes in for either of us. We went our separate ways because of our careers last time. What will make this time any different?"

"This time will be different because I won't choose my career over you. Right now, things are fine how they are. If a year or so down the line you get another posting, I'll come with you if that's what you want to do. What matters is that every time I think about losing you, I think about that night back in LA when we first kissed. Seeing the city lights dance on the water and how beautiful you looked. I knew that night that I had fallen in love with a careless man's careful daughter and have been in love with her ever since. You're the best thing in my life and I'll do whatever it takes to keep you in my life."

Amber was still trying to digest his words when she realized that he was kneeling down on the ground before her. She watched in silence as Spencer reached into the pocket of his tuxedo jacket.

"Amber Rossi, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" he said, as he tried to open the small jewelry box he held in his hand. As he fumbled with it, the velvet box fell out of his hand and dropped onto the snow. Feeling his cheeks grow warm, Spencer retrieved the box and finally opened it, holding it out to her.

Amber stood, looking down in disbelief at the ring. This had come out of left field on her, but as she looked down at the ring and the man holding it, there was only one word that was in her mind right now. Just one word that she had to find the courage to speak.

"Yes," Amber finally manage to get out.

As the relief washed over him, Spencer slipped the ring on her finger. As he started to stand back up, once again, his dress shoes slipped on the snowy ground. Amber reached out to steady him, which only ended up with them both ending up on the snow covered pavement. Amber laughed as she looked down at Spencer from their awkward position. Bending her head toward his, she kissed him on the lips.

"Are you two, okay?" JJ asked. She and Garcia were now standing next to the couple on the ground.

"Yeah, we're fine," Spencer said, as JJ helped Amber to her feet and then he got carefully to his own.

"Real smooth there, Bambi," Garcia said, brushing snow off the back of Reid's jacket.

"Congratulations," JJ said, hugging first Spencer and then Amber.

"So which one of you are going to break the news to Agent Rossi?" Garcia asked looking first at Reid and then at Amber.

"I think he already knows," JJ commented, pointing to the house, before bending down to retrieve the velvet box the ring had been in.

All three of them looked in that direction to see what she was referring to. There in the front window, they saw the faces of the rest of the team. For the third time, Reid felt the heat rise in his cheeks as he realize his whole team had been a witness to his less than perfect proposal.

"I'm never going to live this down," Reid said softly.

"Well, staying out here isn't going to help, so how about we get in out of the cold," Amber suggested, slipping her arm around his waist.

As she walked slowly toward the house with the man she loved, Amber had no clue as to what the future had in store for them. What she was sure of, was that right here and now, this felt right. As for what lay around the corner, she and Spencer would face that together. It wouldn't be easy, but then real life never was.


End file.
